Cityscraped
by MayBeAPolarBear
Summary: Living in a suburban setting, Sollux Captor is pretty happy with things, although he's not exactly the most well-off teenager. Until the pompous Eridan Ampora enters his life. AU, Mature.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note : Hi! This is my first ever Homestuck fanfiction I've ever written. It's an AU, with future smuttiness later on, so watch out! I hope you enjoy~**

* * *

"Haha, you're so fucking useless on that, it's not even funny."

Sollux Captor grinded to a halt on his skateboard and glared in the direction from which the insult had just been spat at him. His eyes narrowed, giving the ebony black-haired teen who had thrown the passing comment at him a death stare.

"Shut up, KK, I'd like to see you bust a move on this thing." Sollux hissed, stepping down on the end of the board, and letting it clatter on the gritted ground for emphasis. "Everyone knows you can't skate for shit. That's why you're sitting over there, being useless."

The other teen scowled, his dark face turning red with frustration. He ran his fingertips through his jet-black head of flyaway curls, his ringlets rustled in the gentle breeze. "Why would I waste my time with skateboarding? That's shit is for amateurs. Now, BMX biking, that's a real thing to do. A real man's sport."

Sollux rolled his eyes behind his red and blue lenses, and stepped back onto his board again. Karkat Vantas, his irritating 'best friend', was perched on top of an unused skating ramp, his short legs dangling down the slope. Sollux was pretty sure he had just tagged along with him to the local skate park just to heckle him. Karkat had brought along his new BMX bike that he had recently received as a birthday present, but he had trouble riding it, for he was too short for it. The bike was propped up against the ramp, with its sparkling-new silver frame, and its impressive set of wheels. Sollux wished his parents would splash out on a new board for his 19th birthday which was coming up, but he highly doubted it. His parents did not have the greatest jobs in the world, and had difficulty in paying the rent each month, let alone having to worry about buying presents for their son. He would be lucky if he got anything, to be honest. Shaking those thoughts out of his mind, he got himself going on his skateboard.

Skating, along with computer programming and video-gaming, was one of Sollux's passions. When he wasn't submerged in his online life, he would be out at the city skate park, sometimes with Karkat (much to his annoyance), just messing around on his board. It was a pathetic old thing, the wood was chipped in places, and the coloured image on the deck was fading. It was barely visible anymore, but if you looked hard enough, you could just about make out the red and blue splattered paintwork, with an achromatized image of a bee in the centre. Sollux secretly thought bees were the most hardcore insects out there. If anything was brave enough to give its life to inflict even the smallest amount of pain on its enemy, it was the bee. He respected them for that. Plus, they made delicious honey, which Sollux basically slathered on everything he ate. In a way, he was glad the image of the bee was faded. People would surely make fun of him for having a bee on his deck.

He couldn't really be seen with a wimpy bee on his board, could he? Sure, he adored the buzzing creatures, but it just didn't match his image. He was of a sizable height for his age, about 5'9'', with a thin, lanky frame. He had a fairly pale complexion, but this varied on whether he had been stuck inside for weeks on his laptop, or if he was out skating. He didn't really tan that easily, but his skin was dark enough for him not to be deemed as someone who didn't get out of the house much. A few light freckles dotted across his nose and peppered his rosy cheeks, which seemed to add to his adorable, carefree appearance. He wore his ginger brown hair long with dwindling locks that stuck out at the sides, and his lengthy fringe just about brushed over his attentive hazel eyes. He always wore a pair of shades; specially tailored so that one of the lenses was blue, and the other red, balanced on the bridge of his nose. He had a slight, yet noticeable lisp, which was the result of his crooked teeth. He had always had bad teeth when he was younger, but the frequent skating accidents had knocked his teeth out of shape. His parents couldn't afford dental corrective procedures, so he just had to put up with it. It didn't affect Sollux too much, just on those rare occasions at college where he had to give a public speech. It didn't really show, Sollux had found he could control it usually, but making speeches in front of the class did worry him. He found it increasingly hard to keep his lisp at bay when he was worried. Luckily for him, most people didn't pick up on it, and were pretty decent about it if they did. Only the douchebags of his class were low enough to bully him about it, and even then Sollux just laughed it off in his cool manner. He had grown accustomed to names such as 'Lisp Boy' and 'Freak', that they had lost their meaning to him. Still, years of bullying in primary school had rendered him to a nervous wreck in social situations with strangers. He hated being the centre of attention. This was why he avoided public speaking if he could help it.

Sollux was building up a speed on his board, as he neared the ramp adjacent to the one Karkat was lounging on. He stopped propelling the board with his right foot, and popped that foot up onto the gritty surface of his skateboard along with his left foot, trying hard to keep his balance. Balance was the key to becoming a great skater, Sollux had discovered, so he focussed on training up his balance rather than practicing fancy stunts, which Karkat was always more than happy to show off with on his BMX. Sollux seared up the slope, concentrating on his balance, and then launched off the edge of the ramp, performing a near-perfect kickflip, and landed on the dusty grit triumphantly.

"Oh, clap clap, I'm soooo impressed." Karkat glowered at him, clapping his hands in mock enthusiasm like a demented seal on caffeine. "Do a barrel roll."

"Fuck off, KK." smirked Sollux, gliding over to the grumpy teenager, who was getting down from the ramp he was sitting on. "You're such a loser, quoting an internet meme in a real life situation."

Karkat simply responded with a throaty growl. "Right, I'm bored with this shit. Can we go back to your place now? It's getting dark. And I don't want to get assraped by the potheads who hang around this dump at night."

"Pff, even they'd be sober enough to avoid your ass." Sollux retorted. He was rewarded with a punch to the arm from his best friend.

"Nobody can resist this choice ass." grinned Karkat, getting onto his bike, his feet just managing to touch the pedals. "What's your mum cooking for dinner? I'm so hungry, I would even eat a whole pot of that nauseating, barf-yellow, sickly-sweet slop you call honey."

"Don't be hating on honey, it's fucking delicious. And it goes with everything." said Sollux, as he glissaded beside the shorter teen, who seemed to be having trouble keeping his balance on his new bike. "You're a little short for that thing, don't you think? You can hardly reach the fucking pedals."

"Shut your face!" Karkat yelled at him, "I can ride it just fine! Watch!"

Karkat skiddered across the gravel, and attempted to tilt on the back wheel. Unfortunately, he was concentrating so much on trying to impress Sollux, he wasn't looking where he was going, and collided into something. The shorter teen was knocked off his bike, and whatever he had bumped into was thrown to the floor as well. Sollux groaned and rolled his eyes, before inspecting the damage caused by his clumsy friend.


	2. Chapter 2

"Agh, FUCKASS!" Karkat winced, as Sollux hurried over, hopping off his board. The scene would have been comical if Karkat hadn't have taken out another innocent bystander when he soared off his bike. There was just a mangled mess of bodies scrabbling in the dirt.

"KK, get the fuck up, you've knocked some guy out!" exclaimed Sollux, crouching down to the victim. Karkat was sprawled on top of the poor citizen, whining about a few cuts and grazes he had earned by trying to show off. Sollux wrenched the whimpering Karkat aside, as he inspected the other guy.

He looked about his age, 18 or 19. He had pale white skin, which could only be described as perfect, unblemished by acne, of which Sollux was often plagued by. Perfectly rounded features, delicate parted lips, and perfectly-styled raven hair with flyaway curls that surrounded his face as he lay there still on the ground. His fringe, which had been dyed a royal purple hue, swept across his lidded eyes. The unfortunate guy looked a little dazed from the crash.

Sollux had to admit, this guy was quite cute. And it wasn't every day that your best friend managed to knock a cute guy unconscious by flying into him with his bike.

"Hey there." Sollux knelt down to the cute-looking teenager, and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. At least, he thought it was his shoulder, he couldn't tell because the guy was wearing an excessively long scarf that covered up his neck and shoulders. Looked like an expensive scarf too.

"W-weh..." gurgled the guy weakly, "W-what the..."

"Why aren't you helping me?" yelled Karkat, trying to pick the grit out from his scraped hands. "This fucking hurts!"

"Shut it, KK, you're fine, so stop crying." Sollux told him firmly, not taking his eyes off cutie-patootie. "Hey man, are you okay?"

"Do I look fuckin' okay to you?" The mysterious scarf-adorned teen shook Sollux's hand off of his shoulder and scowled angrily. "I w-was just mindin' my ow-wn business, then I get knocked ov-ver! Now-w my clothes are all dirty, thanks to you!"

Sollux jolted back as the guy continued to screech into his face. He was hoping that he would thank him for coming over to see he was alright, instead of screaming abuse at him.

"Whoa, calm down! I wasn't the person who knocked you over. That would be my asshole friend, KK. I just came to check you were okay! God, talk about a gracious thank-you."

The stranger's eyebrows furrowed, as he patted the ground; looking for something?

"W-Where are my fuckin' glasses?" he growled, "I can't fuckin' see w-without them!"

Karkat shuffled over on hearing this, looking rather sheepish. "Heh, about that..."

He subtly pointed to a pair of thick, rectangular-rimmed frames that lay shattered on the floor. "Kinda smashed in the collision."

"Oh COD!" The guy brought his hands up to his face in the most dramatic way Sollux had ever seen. "Those designer frames were worth £500!"

"Oh shit, I'm sorry..." Karkat gazed to the ground awkwardly, and rubbed his arm. "You can get them replaced, r-right?"

"Of course I can't, idiot! They w-were limited edition!" The enraged cutie shifted himself off the floor and placed his hands on his hips. Sollux cracked a smile. This was hilarious. Karkat looked intimidated at the guy loomed over him.

"I hope that I nev-ver hav-ve the misfortune to run into you two halfw-wits ev-ver AGAIN!" he yelled, before striding off. Karkat simply stared at him as he stomped off, his mouth almost dropping to the ground with amazement.

"That guy... is the biggest FUCKASS I have EVER seen!" drawled Karkat, still recovering from the shock at being shouted at by a complete stranger. "Jesus Christ!"

Sollux burst into laughter. "Dude! You completely pissed your pants! That was hilarious!"

"F-Fuck off!" Karkat growled, picking up his bike. "Aw, shit, it's got a scrape on it. I blame that fuckass for getting in the damn way!"

"Don't blame him, you weren't looking where you were going." Sollux corrected him, stepping back onto his beloved skateboard.

"Well, I just hope we don't encounter him again. What a drama queen!"

Sollux nodded in approval. Though secretly, he wanted to meet that cute guy again.


	3. Chapter 3

Back home, Sollux was in his room with Karkat, the two lounging on Sollux's matching set of blue and red beanbags. Karkat had been staying round Sollux's house throughout the duration of the summer holidays. Sometimes they swapped round; and Sollux went round to the Vantas household. The two had pretty much been inseparable throughout the entire break.

"So, looking forward to going back to college?" Sollux grinned, melting into the cushiony blue beanbag he was relaxing into. He earned a painful-sounding groan from Karkat.

"Fuck no. Why the hell would I want to go back to that lunatic asylum? Ugh, I bet I'll get all the assholes in my classes, like usual. Always happens each year." Karkat grunted, taking a sip of Coca-Cola as he leant back into the plushy material of the red beanbag.

"You might find someone you like though." Sollux simpered, giving Karkat the 'eyebrows' look. Karkat growled in reply. "What? You never know. Though I doubt it, it's not like you're the friendliest guy on earth. I'm surprised I even put up with you."

"Let's just drop this whole conversation." grumbled Karkat, blushing red. He got embarrassed whenever anything regarding romance was brought up.

"Anyway, what was with that guy at the park earlier? What a fucking weirdo! I've never seen that sorry excuse for a man lurking round before."

"Maybe he's new?" pondered Sollux, thoughts of the adorable, yet overdramatic teenager flooding into his mind.

"Let's hope for humanity's sake that he was just passing through. I don't want to run into that fuckass again, literally and hypothetically speaking."

Sollux just let out an inaudible mumble, before flicking the TV on with the remote that was conveniently placed beside his beanbag. The television set flickered into life, filling the somewhat dark room with a pleasant blue light. Sollux punched some buttons on the remote, and switched the channel to some cartoon show.

"Hey! This is shitty. I want to choose what we watch." Karkat leant over and attempted to grab the remote from Sollux. However, his arms were too short, and all he managed to do was topple over onto Sollux's lap.

"No KK, that is not how you score dick." Sollux shoved Karkat onto the floor, and held the remote up high so he couldn't reach it.

"You're the dick!" muttered Karkat gruffly, "I don't want to watch this toony shit."

"What, and your romance films are any better?"

Karkat let out a loud groan. He padded back over to his beanbag and settled down into it once again, defeated. They ended up watching a couple of hours of _Adventure Time_, until Karkat fell asleep halfway through an episode. Sollux just smiled, as he gently lifted the sleeping teen up from the cushiony embrace of the red beanbag, up onto the blow-up mattress which was to bed his bed for the night. The things he did for his best friend. He pulled the duvet over Karkat, before slipping into his own bed. "Night, KK."


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, both Sollux and Karkat had a lie-in. It was their summer break, so they didn't need to wake up early for anything. Groggily, Sollux cracked open an eye at around 9:50, pushed the duvet away and dangled his legs over the edge of the bed as he inspected his bedroom.

The walls had been painted a faint copper red colour; Sollux fondly remembered going to the DIY store with his father to choose some paint for his room, when he was just 6 years old. He had also chosen the carpet, once light blue and fluffy, it had been reduced to a frizzy greyish mess. Sollux had spilt countless items of food and drink onto that flooring, and remembered where each stain was situated. He really wanted to get a new carpet fitted, but his parents simply didn't have the money for those sorts of luxuries. So he just had to put up with it. From the ceiling, hung a pitiful-looking overhead lamp, encased with a lampshade in the shape of a bumble bee.

On seeing that lampshade in the DIY store, Sollux aged 6 had begged and pleaded with his father to buy it for him. He had always loved bees, ever since his parents took him to an apiary. Sollux loved the cute buzzing noises they made as they whizzed about from flower to flower, their dainty little appearance, and their hardworking attitude. When he tasted honey for the first time, he vowed that he would become a beekeeper when he was older. Of course, that aspiration perished over time, but Sollux's fondness for bees still stuck.

In the far corner of his room, stood the old wooden desk, on which Sollux kept his trusty laptop. Leaned up against one of the legs of the desk, has his red and blue rucksack. Sollux groaned silently at the thought of going back to college. There was also a small wardrobe and a bookshelf. Sollux didn't really have much furniture; his parents couldn't afford it, so he just about settled for the bare essentials. He had a single bed that leant up against the wall, by the arched window that looked out onto the front yard. Sollux's red and blue duvet lay on the end of his bed in a crumpled pile. He'd make his bed later. His crappy TV set, surrounded by his beanbags, was beside his bed. Karkat was sprawled out on his mattress in the centre of the room, growling about something in his sleep.

Sollux decided he wasn't going be an asshole and bombard Karkat with pillows today. Instead, he made his bed as quietly as he could, and tiptoed out of his room to the family bathroom.

The bathroom looked clean-ish. Cleaner than the state his room was in, anyway. After answering the call of nature, Sollux turned the shower on, and ripped off his clothes; tossing them into an untidy pile on the tiled floor. He stepped into the shower, as the warm water hit his skin. He breathed a sigh of relief as he propped his forehead against the cool wall tiles, letting the water pour down onto him. Grabbing the bottle of his favourite shower gel, _Lynx Fever_, he squirted a dollop of the marmalade-coloured soap into his palms, and lathered himself up with suds. Good God, this stuff smelt awesome. He took a bottle of cheap home brand shampoo and poured the stuff into his dark hair, massaging it in furiously.

"SWEET LITTLE BUMBLE BEE, I KNOW WHAT YOU WANT FROM ME!" Sollux sang at the top of his lungs, as he washed the suds off, "SWEET LITTLE BUMBLE BEE, MORE THAN JUST A FANTASY!"

Sollux usually sang terribly cheesy songs about bees in the shower. This one was his favourite at the moment, and he managed to piss off both his parents, plus Karkat. There was a loud rapping on the bathroom door, followed by some unrecognisable shouting. Sollux switched off the water, and stepped out of the shower, and the shouting became understandable.

"JESUS CHRIST, SOLLUX!" Looks as if Karkat managed to get up after all. "Shut UP! Stop singing about fucking bees!"

"Nah." Sollux replied, prompting some more earsplitting slams on the bathroom door. "Sweet little bumble bee, I know what you want from me..."

"GOD!" Karkat yelled from behind the door, "Just get your ass out of the bathroom so I can have a damn shower!"

The taller teenager grinned, snatching a towel from the radiator rack and tying it around his waist. He would have happily strutted back to his room stark naked, but he thought he'd save Karkat the embarrassment. He unlocked the door, and came face to face with a scowling Karkat. The short teen was holding a red towel to his chest, along with some shower gel and shampoo.

"Morning, KK. Aren't you just a little ray of sunshine today?" Sollux said sarcastically as he went past.

"Fuck off, asshole." Karkat pushed past him, and locked the bathroom door. Looked as if he was still half-asleep from being awoken by Sollux's glorious performance of 'Sweet Little Bumble Bee'. Sollux grinned to himself throughout the entire walk back to his room.

Slamming his bedroom door, he whipped the towel from around his waist and rubbed himself down with it. After a few minutes of vigorous towel-drying, his shadowy-dark hair was fairly dry. Those stupid wisps of hair still stuck out at the sides, though. He combed his fringe over his eyes, admiring himself in the tall mirror which had been attached to his door. Oh yes, he was sexy and he knew it.

Okay, enough gazing at his handsome reflection. He wandered over to his wardrobe and rummaged about in his underwear compartment until he found his favourite pair of boxers. A pale yellow pair, with a bumble bee on the crotch. The elastic rim of the undergarments had 'I'M A BUSY BEE' printed on it in bold. Karkat had purchased them while on holiday, as an ironic gesture of best friendship. Sollux treasured the gift by wearing them every time he found them in his underwear drawer. After slipping the bee boxers on, he pulled out a plain black t-shirt with a honey-yellow Gemini symbol printed in the centre. Sollux wasn't really one for the Zodiac, but he thought the symbol on it was pretty awesome. He put that on, before searching around for some jeans he could wear. He found a clean pair at the back of the wardrobe, although they were slightly ripped at the ankles. He slid into the jeans, as he grabbed a pair of socks from one of the drawers and put those on too. His red and blue shades were neatly folded on his desk, so he picked those up and balanced them on the bridge of his nose.

He admired himself in the mirror again. Not too bad. Okay, time to put his studs in. His sparse collection of earrings were kept in a little wooden box on his desk. Taking a couple of his favourite pieces, his matching set of red and blue spikes and a pair of glass studs. Okay, he couldn't afford real diamonds, so he settled with plastic spikes and glass studs. After putting his earrings in, he was ready to go. Karkat was still in the shower.

Walking out from his room, past the shower, Sollux tapped on the shower door. "Oi, KK! Want me to make you anything for breakfast?"

"How fucking considerate of you!" came the muffled shout in the bathroom. "I'll have anything, just don't put any of that shitty honey on it!"

Sollux chuckled to himself. Of course he was going to go out of his way to put a smidgen of honey on his best friend's breakfast. He was just evil like that.

He trudged down the stairs and brushed past his father on the way down.

"Watch where you're going, Sollux." his father grinned, as the teen almost knocked him flying as he dashed down the stairs.

"Sorry, dad." Sollux apologised. "Are you going to work today?"

"Of course, how the hell else are we supposed to make a living?" chuckled his father cheerily. Sollux couldn't understand how he kept his happy composition all the time. Even though he was stuck with a shitty job, he always came home with a smile on his face. The hazel-eyed boy shrugged it off. "Have a nice day, dad."

"Hah, I wish." smirked his father, as he disappeared up the stairs. His father usually worked late, so he wouldn't be seeing him again until night. He got to the bottom of the stairs, walked down the hallway and turned into the kitchen. Not before he was knocked to the floor by a boisterous bundle of light golden fur.

"Morning, Bumble!" Sollux greeted the animal, as it licked his face overenthusiastically. It was Bumble, his 4 year old Golden Retriever. When he was 14, he had begged his parents to let him keep some bees as pets. They weren't overly keen on the idea, so they got him a dog from the rescue centre instead. Dogs were just as awesome as bees, Sollux decided. Giving Bumble a friendly pat on the head, he made his way into the kitchen, the Retriever loping beside him.

Mrs. Captor was washing up some dishes in the sink. As Sollux swept into the room, she greeted him. She wasn't as cheery as Sollux's dad, but it was still a nice gesture. Her job usually got to her in the end, which affected her mood. She worked late, like his father.

"Hi, mum." Sollux smiled, as he places four slices of white bread into the toaster. "Working late tonight?"

"You know it." Sollux's mother seemed rushed, as she quickly finished the washing up. She grabbed her coat that was hung over the back of one of the kitchen chairs. "Make sure you make something proper for Karkat and yourself to eat."

"No problem, mum. We'll probably go out to the skatepark later with some friends, so I can grab something to eat while I'm out."

"Have fun, dear." Mrs. Captor gave her son a brief hug, before exiting the kitchen. "I'll be back at around 9-ish. I've got a longer shift today."

"Sure thing!" Sollux called back, as the toast popped up. He heard the familiar sounds of a car engine rumbling outside, as he slapped Karkat's slices with butter, and then his own with a generous helping on honey. Oh, but he didn't forget to put the tiniest amount of honey onto the undersides of Karkat's toast.

At that moment, Karkat came thundering down the stairs and into the kitchen, with the velocity of a tornado. He was wearing a pair of fairly ripped jeans and a plain black tee which matched his murky hair colour.

"Agh, get off me you fucking animal!" barked Karkat, as he pushed the overexcited Bumble away from him. "Jesus, did you feed this thing honey again?"

"Nah, he's just needs to go out. I'm surprised my mum didn't let him out yet." Sollux said, as he brought Karkat's breakfast to him on a slightly chipped plate. "Right, Bumble, out you go!"

He unlocked the back door, and Bumble raced out into the garden. It was a fairly pathetic excuse for a garden, but it was a garden no less. The grass had been mown by Sollux a few days before, his father had paid him to do it. A thick hedgerow surrounded the entire garden, like added security. His parents were in no way gardeners, but Sollux noticed that his mother often went out there to sit on the paved patio when it was sunny.

"So, what's happening today?" Karkat asked, halfway through a mouthful of toast. "Skate park?"

"Yep." replied Sollux, bringing his own breakfast over to the table, drew up a chair and began to eat. "I'm going to text GZ, see if he can come out today."

"Cool." Karkat munched through his second slice of toast.

Sollux brought his crappy phone out of his trouser pocket. It wasn't anything special like an _iPhone_ or a _Blackberry_, was just a plain old _Nokia _brick. Sure, the screen was slightly cracked, and he had dropped it a few times, but it worked. Sollux swore that his phone was secretly a cockroach in disguise; it just wouldn't break. But then again, he supposed that was a good thing. Bringing up the text-sending screen, he began to type a message to his pal, Gamzee Makara.

_10:45, Saturday _

"_hey there, gz, want two go two the 2katepark wiith kk and me?"_

Sollux slipped his phone back into his pocket. It was usually a while before Gamzee replied; Sollux just assumed that he was a little slow. So he just nibbled at his honey-covered toast. About two minutes later, there was a buzzing in his pocket.

_10:47, Saturday _

"_SuRe tHiNg, MoThErFuCkEr. WhAt tImE? hOnK. :O)"_

Well, that was a pretty quick reply. Quick for Gamzee anyway. He tapped another reply, as Karkat got up and washed his plate in the sink.

_10:48, Saturday _

"_how about 11:20? doe2 that 2eem good two you?"_

He put his Nokia down on the table, expecting a quick response. While he waited, he finished off his breakfast, before plunging the crumb-covered plate into the sink. His phone vibrated once again.

_10:50, Saturday _

"ThAt's fInE. sEe yOu sOoN, bRo. :o)"

Sollux slipped the phone into his pocket once again. "GZ's coming. We should probably get going now."

"Yeah, okay. I'm going to get my hoodie, it looks cold out this morning. Want me to get anything of yours from upstairs?"

"Just my pullover hoodie with the red and blue skull on it, it should be hanging up somewhere."

"Sure thing." Karkat disappeared into the hallway.

Meanwhile, Sollux decided that Bumble had been out in the garden for a reasonable amount of time now, so he called the dog back in. The Golden Retriever trotted back into the house, jumping up at Sollux as he tried to lock the back door. "Whoa, calm down, boy!" Sollux laughed, pushing Bumble's prying wet nose away from him. "You be a good dog, and maybe I'll take you for walkies later."

Bumble barked happily, before settling down in his beaten-up dog bed in the corner of the kitchen.

Sollux walked out of the kitchen, closing the door behind him, where he met up with Karkat. The darker-skinned boy thrust Sollux's hoodie into his hands, then shoving his hands into the pockets of his own hoodie. It was grey, with some sort of logo printed on the front, which resembled a beastly-looking crab. Karkat liked crabs for some reason, but Sollux couldn't see why. In his opinions, bees more much cooler.

"Stop gawking at my hoodie and let's go." growled Karkat, opening the front door. Sollux nodded, pulling his hoodie over his head and over his shirt.

Sollux's trusty skateboard was propped up by the door, beside the small cloakroom. He grabbed it on the way out. It seemed as if Karkat had already taken his BMX bike out of the garage, because it was there and waiting by the front door of the house. Karkat hopped on his bike (with some difficulty), and rode out of the driveway onto the street. Sollux followed him on his board, riding alongside him.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note : Well, this is a pretty long chapter compared to the others. I had to find an appropriate place to stop. I'd just like to say a big thank you to everyone who's been reading my fic so far! I love you all~**

* * *

They soon reached the local city skate park. Sollux spent countless hours there, and even though it needed refurbishing, it fitted its purpose just fine. Gamzee was already there waiting for them; leant up against one of the larger skate ramps, drinking Faygo. It took a few seconds for him to realise they had entered the park, and when he did, he grinned.

"Hey, what's up motherfuckers?" Gamzee drawled, with a dreamy look on his dark face.

"Not much." grunted Karkat, dismounting his bike. "Where's your new board? You said you'd show us some tricks on it the next time we met up."

"Oh yeah, it's a motherfucking miracle, bro." Gamzee picked up his skateboard, and showed it to Sollux and Karkat. It looked pretty good.

"What the fuck, Gamzee, is that a damn clown on the decking?" Karkat pointed to the image of a creepy-looking clown on Gamzee's board.

"The hell it is." Gamzee bubbled, placing the board back on the grit and stepping on the end of it with his foot. "Clowns are bitchtits wicked."

"Ugh, can you just show us how good you are on it, GZ?" Sollux butted in, "The picture on the back doesn't really matter that much in comparison to how well it works."

"Oh yeah, about that." Gamzee flashed them his trademark goofy smile. "How's this motherfucking miracle for size?"

Gamzee definitely wasn't slow when it came to skating. Instantly, he was off, gliding across the gravel at a furious speed. He was getting closer and closer to the old iron railings that secured the park, then hopped up onto them, grinding with sheer force. When he decided that Sollux and Karkat were impressed enough, he simply hopped off, landing gracefully on the grit.

"Damn, it was worth the money then." exclaimed Karkat, as Gamzee tottered over to them once again.

"Yeah, motherfucker..." Gamzee seemed a little dreamy there for a second, as he drifted out of the conversation. "Hey look at that motherfucker over there. I ain't never seen his mug around here before."

All three of them turned to a lonely-looking stranger who had entered the park. He was wearing the same scarf as yesterday, and almost identical glasses to the ones Karkat accidentally smashed balanced on his nose. He clutched a skateboard to his chest.

"Hey! It's the fuckass I knocked over yesterday!" exclaimed Karkat. "What's he back here for?"

There was a moment of silence as the raven-haired teen placed his board on the ground, and shakily tried to balance on it. He looked unconfident. He managed to get going on the board, but lost his footing, and tumbled face first to the ground. Gamzee and Karkat just sat back and winced. "Ooh, I felt that one, motherfucker."

Only Sollux hurried over to check if he was okay.

"Jesus, are you alright?" Sollux knelt over and shook the guy's shoulder.

"Mmrf... Y-yeah..."

He sat up, and Sollux got a nice close-up view of his pretty face. Although it was a little scuffed up with grit and dirt from the fall, his shadowy black wisps of hair twirled about in the wind, and his curious azure eyes shimmered like polished sapphires. Wait, was he crying? It seemed as if tears were beginning to glaze in his eyes.

"Whoa, it's okay!" Sollux assured, he didn't want the guy to start bawling in front of him. That would have been incredibly awkward for the both of them. "Uh, what's your name?"

"E-Eridan." the teenager quivered, "Eridan A-Ampora."

"Okay, Eridan." Sollux noticed that he was missing his glasses. Luckily, they had fallen beside him, undamaged this time. Almost instinctively, Sollux picked up the glasses and placed them back onto Eridan's face.

"Thank y-you..." Eridan murmured, blushing a little. "I think I'll be okay, now."

Eridan got up, and straightened himself out. his face was still red from the embarrassment of falling over in front of everyone. He turned to Sollux.

"And who do I owe the pleasure to?" he said. Hot damn. This guy had the _cutest _little voice Sollux had ever heard. He had a slight, but noticeable Scottish accent, and the way he was trying to speak like the Queen of England added to the cuteness.

"Uhh..." Sollux composed himself. "Sollux Captor."

"We seem to have gotten off on the wrong foot, Sol." smiled Eridan, "I made a proper scene yesterday. Sorry, I tend to get a little... dramatic."

_You don't say_, thought Sollux. "That's alright, I guess. Um, did you get your specs fixed? I'm sorry that my friend is such a clumsy asshole."

"Ahh, don't worry about that. I just bought a new pair."

"Oh, okay then. Anyway, are you new here?" asked Sollux, changing the conversation.

"Indeed. I recently moved down from Scotland, you see, for various reasons. I thought I'd start out fresh."

Sollux wasn't going to pry into this guy's history just yet. "So, you like to skate?"

"Well, actually, to be quite honest..." Eridan sighed hopelessly, "I've never used one of these things in my entire life. It seemed easy when I saw you doing it yesterday, but I guess it takes a shit ton of practice."

Looked as if Eridan's fancy side was fading away. Sollux wondered if it was just a disguise to impress him? Oh well, it seemed as if his true self was shining out a little.

"Well, if you really want to learn, I'm... willing to teach you some techniques, I guess." Sollux scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. Eridan beamed at him.

"That would be v-very aw-wesome!" Eridan exclaimed.

"Hey, don't mean to be rude or anything, but do you have a speech impediment or something?" Sollux suddenly asked. Eridan's wide smile fell.

"Oh yeah, that..." he said solemnly, "I can usually control it, but sometimes when I get... overexcited, it shows up."

"I understand, bro, no need to get upset about it." Sollux offered him a thoughtful smile. "It's not really a big deal."

Eridan's lips upturned into a smile. "I'm glad that someone doesn't make fun of it."

"Well, people shouldn't feel the need to pick on someone just because of the way they speak." growled Sollux, remembering the countless times he had been bullied for his lisp. "Anyway, want me to show you the basics of skating? Plus you can meet GZ and KK."

"Yeah!" Eridan beamed. "I can't believe how nice you're bein' to me here. I've been a total ass to you guys."

"Heh, it's alright, I think everyone can be an ass some time." Sollux grinned, thinking of how annoying Karkat could be sometimes.

Sollux wandered back to where Gamzee and Karkat were standing. "This is Eridan." Sollux awkwardly introduced the teen. "He seems pretty decent, so he'll be hanging around with us for a bit."

Gamzee had a dreamy-looking expression plastered onto his face, his smokey purple eyes fluttering sleepily. "Hey, motherfucker. Name's Gamzee Makara."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Makara." Eridan smiled politely. His formality was creeping back again.

"Whoa, ED, you don't need to act fancy to try and impress us." Sollux jabbed Eridan playfully in the ribs. "We're common scumbags, just be yourself."

Eridan gasped quietly, then nodded. "Sorry."

Karkat cut in. "I'm sorry about your glasses..." he mumbled, not daring to look at Eridan in the face.

"It's alright, I guess." Eridan cocked his head to the side thoughtfully. "I overreacted. They weren't expensive."

"Didn't you say they were £500?" Sollux asked. In his world, that amount of money was a hefty sum to pay for a pair of glasses.

"Not a big deal. My father earns a lot of money." Eridan said, in a high-and-mighty tone. This guy really liked to show off. But Sollux tried to look past that. "Money isn't a problem for me."

"Then why the hell are you down at a shitty city skate park?" Karkat spat, in disbelief.

"Mhm." Eridan mumbled. "Just lookin' for some guys to hang out with, can you blame me? I just moved here."

"Mrmph." Karkat folded his arms and rolled his eyes.

"Well, I'm always motherfucking happy to welcome a new bro." Gamzee broke the awkward silence.

"Yeah, wicked..." Eridan chuckled nervously. He edged away from Gamzee and Karkat, closer to Sollux.

"Wanna learn how to skate or not?" grinned Sollux, asking a question that didn't even need to be answered. Eridan's perfect little smile showed, indicated his answer.

"Uhh, I think me and Gamzee are going to chill here for a while." Karkat announced, giving Eridan a frosty glare. "You can do what you want with _Prince _over there."

"Fine. I will." Sollux replied, his voice taking on a slightly hostile tone. Karkat and Eridan didn't seem to be hitting off so well, so he ushered the spectacled teen over to one of the short ramps, away from Karkat and Gamzee. Karkat would probably say something nasty; which he would later regret, to Eridan, which would upset the already-nervous boy. Eridan clutched the skateboard tighter to his chest, as Sollux rolled his own board back and forwards with his foot.


	6. Chapter 6

"Okay, the most important thing is to keep your balance," said Sollux, talking as if he was some kind of skateboarding pro. Which he wasn't, of course. "Don't put all your concentration into trying to impress people with tricks, because if you do that, you'll never get better."

Sollux looked up, to make sure Eridan was listening. He was, his curious watery blue eyes glimmering.

"Alright. So, now you're concentrating on your balance, you can start to get going." To illustrate this, Sollux placed one foot onto his board, and began to pump the ground with his other foot. "The first thing is to make sure you can ride before falling off, then tricks will follow."

His board grinded to a halt, as he turned back to Eridan. "Now, you try."

Eridan hesitated, gazing down to the board that he hugged tightly.

"You can do it, if you focus." Sollux offered some friendly advice.

"W-what if I fall? I can't be scrapin' up my face, now-w can I?" Eridan muttered.

"Ugh..." Sollux rubbed his temples with his splayed fingertips. "Okay, if you really want, I'll walk by you, if you fall, I'll catch you."

Eridan seemed to be a little more assured by this. He placed his board onto the gravel and positioned his foot on the board. Sollux noticed that he was wearing a shiny-new pair of converse shoes. He suspected they were custom made, because he'd never seen shoes like that before. They were a royal purple colour, with little seahorses, in all different colours, dotted on the fabric. Sollux took a moment to glance down at his own shoes; a scruffy-looking pair of cheap trainers that he had picked up from some shady-looking market stall. He was pretty sure there were holes in them, too. What he'd do for a nice pair of shoes...

Shaking himself from his thoughts, Sollux realised Eridan had attempted to balance on his board. The taller boy hurried to his side, ready to catch him if he fell.

"Eridan, you're doing great!" praised Sollux. Eridan smiled again, but continued to focus on his balance.

Then suddenly, the front wheel of Eridan's board collided with something on the ground, and the bespectacled teen was thrown backwards, only to be caught spectacularly in Sollux's waiting arms. Eridan sure wasn't as frail and delicate-looking as Sollux initially thought, as the impact knocked them both to the grit, kicking up a cloud of thick, grey dust.

Sollux could feel Eridan's body on his chest, as they lay on the ground. Shit, he was heavier than Sollux thought, too. Everything was still for a moment as the dust cloud cleared, then Eridan spoke up.

"Oh Cod, I'm sorry..." he apologised, not making any effort to get up. "Thanks for breakin' my fall, though."

"No problem..." mumbled Sollux. Mm, Eridan smelt good. Was that _Davidoff Cool Water _he was wearing? Whatever it was, it smelt really nice on him. "You might want to get off now, GZ and KK are looking at us."

Eridan struggled off him, and landed in the gravel beside him. Gamzee and Karkat had indeed seen the scene.

"Nice to see you're having a motherfucking good time." Gamzee called over, a perverted grin spreading across his face. "Looks like Sollux and the new motherfucker are going to make some sweet miracles. Honk honk."

"Shut up, Gamzee, that's disgusting." Karkat's eyebrows furrowed, he got tetchy at any kind of sexual innuendo. "Sollux, get your ass off the ground and teach Prince Fuckass over there to stand on a fucking skateboard, instead of floundering about in the dust."

"Alright, alright." Sollux hoisted himself up. "Okay, let's try again..."

They practised for hours. Eridan seemed to be getting the hang of things, but wouldn't dare step onto the board without Sollux besides him. It was a sort of security thing.

"Sollux! It's getting dark, motherfucker." Gamzee called over to him, "I'm heading home now. Catch you guys another time. Honk."

Sollux had lost track of time. Pulling his mobile phone out of his pocket and checking the time, he realised it was 8:30 pm.

"I guess we've got to call it a day," said Sollux to Eridan. "Karkat and I need to get back home."

"Oh, okay." Eridan seemed disappointed. "Well, would you mind walking me back home? I've never been out so late before, and I'm nervous about walking home in the dark..."

Sollux sighed. It wasn't usually too dangerous, but if Eridan really wanted to be assisted back home, then he wasn't going to say no. "Okay then. Lead the way."

Eridan picked up his skateboard, hugging it to his chest once again, and nodded curtly. Sollux stepped onto his own board and rolled slowly beside him.

"Hey, KK! We're taking Eridan home." Sollux called over to Karkat, who came riding over on his bike.

"Can't he just go home on his own?" Karkat asked grumpily, not keen on the idea of having to spend another minute with 'Prince Fuckass'.

"It's his first time staying out this late, so he's worried. Give the guy a break." Sollux pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.

"Ugh, fine. You take Prince back, I'll be back at your house. Don't be long, fuckass." growled Karkat, swerving on his bike in the other direction.

"My dad should be home by now. Tell him where I am if he asks." Sollux added. "Set the TV up, we're going to be watching some kickass movies tonight."

Karkat's face lightened up at the prospect of watching a movie with his best friend. "You got it."

"Right, anyway, lead the way." Sollux said, cruising beside Eridan. They made their way out of the skate park, down through narrow alleyways until Eridan turned into an avenue.


	7. Chapter 7

"Wow, you really live down this road?" Sollux asked in amazement, staring at the rows of massive detached houses, their elegant lights from the windows giving off a gentle yellow glow. Sollux compared the rows of lighted mansions; yes, they were big enough to be mansions, to the city streets at Christmas time, illuminated with all the sparkly holiday-themed lights. He'd been down this road very few times in his life, only on the odd occasions when he'd been working as a part-time paperboy. Eridan come to the gates of the house at the far end of the road.

"Yep, here's my house." Eridan said calmly, opening the fancy steel gates that opened up to the front garden. "11 Seashore House."

Sollux didn't really understand why all the fancy houses had special little names instead of just house numbers. Those posh people probably felt they needed to feel grander than the common scumbags like himself. Oh well. Sollux followed Eridan up the cobblestoned pathway leading up to the front door. The pathway was lit up with tiny outdoor lamps. If you had enough money to waste on outdoor lighting, you had to be pretty rich, Sollux decided.

The house had a small porch out front, with a wooden decking, illuminated by a single hanging lamp. There was even a swinging bench in the far corner of the porch. While Sollux admired the picturesque porch, Eridan fumbled in his trouser pockets for the house key. On finding it, he inserted it into the door and pushed it open.

"Oi, I'm guessin' you like my porch." Eridan chuckled, snapping Sollux out of his daze. "You can come in, y'know."

"Haha, sorry, I've never seen such a classy house." Sollux said, stepping into the house, taking care to leave his scruffy shoes and skateboard by the door as he did so. The hallway was fancier than his entire house. The walls were of panelled wood; and it looked as if they had been whitewashed, because they were the perfect shade of pure white. They reminded Sollux of some sort of fancy beach house. The walls were adorned with various ornaments; gleaming silver-plated mirrors and fine paintings of beach sunsets and sunrises. Walking down the hallway, Sollux came to a rather large gold-framed painting.

It looked like a family portrait; a stern looking gentleman with slicked-back raven black hair, a pair of old-fashioned spectacles balanced on his nose, piercing cobalt blue eyes. He was wearing a very exquisite-looking dinner jacket. Beside him was a thin, feeble-looking woman. Despite that, Sollux thought she was rather pretty. She wore sparkling pearl earrings, and a matching white ball gown. Her platinum hair curled around her pale face and dropped to her shoulders. Yes, this woman was very beautiful indeed. Although she looked as solemn as the gentleman. On her lap, sat an infant. Sollux assumed the woman was this baby's mother, as they both had pretty blonde curls. Behind his ridiculously large pair of black-framed glases, the little boy had big, pale blue eyes. The look on his face almost looked as if he was trying to suppress a cheerful grin.

"Hey, ED, who are these people?" asked Sollux, pointing to the portrait. Eridan's grin drooped.

"That man... he's my father." Eridan sighed, as if he didn't really want to talk about it. "He's not around much. He's usually at work. And when he's not workin', he's out drinkin'. When he is home, all he does is moan about what a waste of space I am."

"Damn, I'm sorry..." Sollux murmured, adjusting his glasses. "So you're all alone most of the time? That's fucked up."

"Yeah. He doesn't really give a shit about me anymore, so I just do whatever. He used to be a real good dad when I was younger. Honestly, he was the best dad a kid could ever want."

"Well, that sucks. Who's the woman, then? Is she any better than your dad?"

Eridan let out a pitiful smirk. "My mum. She was lovely..."

"She was?" Sollux uttered quietly.

"She w-was ev-ver so frail..." sniffled Eridan, his bottom lip quivering. "Until one day... she fell ill... Dad took her into hospital, and I... I nev-ver saw her again..."

"Oh shit, I'm sorry..." Sollux murmured, edging closer to Eridan and placed a comforting arm around his shoulders.

Instantly, the dark-haired teen exploded into a fit of tears. Salty rivers poured down his face, as he let all his frustration out into the taller boy's shoulder. Sollux had instinctively drawn Eridan into a tight hug, clutching him firmly as the raven-haired boy sobbed grossly in his embrace. He didn't know what else to do. He rubbed Eridan's back sympathetically, as the shorter teen continued to cry.

It lasted a few minutes, before Eridan drew back, exhausted. "Oh Cod, I'm a fuckin' w-wreck..."

"No, no..." Sollux hushed, cradling him as if he was a frightened infant. "It's fine, honestly..."

Eridan let his head drop against Sollux's shoulder as he regained his breath. "Thank you, Sol... You're a real pal..."

After that sudden breakdown, Eridan had brought Sollux into the spacious lounge, and had put the kettle on. Sollux insisted he didn't waste his expensive coffee on him, but Eridan told him that it was the least he could do at that moment. The kettle bubbled away, as Eridan ushered him onto one of the three large chaise longues in the room. Sollux plopped down onto the cushiony cream fabric as Eridan sat down next to him, his eyes still red and puffy, but at least his adorable smile was beginning to show again. As Eridan poured steaming hot water into the two mugs on the glass top coffee table, Sollux took the time to gaze around the lounge with envy. The walls were identical to the ones in the hallway, white wood panelling, with various paintings and fancy shit hung up on them. The flooring was made up of some sort of creamy-coloured polished wood. There was a huge plasma screen TV mounted up on the wall, polished and new, unlike Sollux's old TV in his bedroom, which had never heard of a thing called furniture polish. The only window in the room was the largest thing Sollux had ever seen; it was one of those full length windows which took up almost the entire wall. Two heavy-looking cream curtains hung by the window. Everything seemed so elegant.

"Coffee's done." Eridan said, bringing over a large mug over to Sollux, placing it onto a beach-themed placemat on the tea table beside him.

"Thank you." Sollux looked up at him graciously. The coffee smelt invigorating.

Eridan sat down next to him again, his mug to his lips. "You're probably wonderin' who that kid was in the paintin'."

"Well, yeah, if you're willing to talk about it." Sollux didn't really want to have to console a blubbering 18 year old again, it was rather awkward for the both of them.

"That kid was me. When I was like, 3. It was a quite few years before mum passed away, I was only 10 when she died." explained Eridan, taking a well-deserved sip of his coffee.

"How come the kid in the picture had blonde hair?" asked Sollux, staring into his swirling brown drink.

"I usually dye it black. It ain't naturally this colour, y'know. At least that way I'm not reminded of my mum all the time. I also thought dying it the same colour as my father's would impress him. Of course, it didn't do shit. I just stuck with black." said Eridan, "And as for my purple-dyed fringe, I just did that because it's my favourite colour. Purple makes everythin' better."

"Ahh." Sollux took a swig of his coffee. It was strong and bitter. "Is your dad coming home tonight?"

"Nope, wouldn't have thought so." sighed Eridan into his drink. "All on my own tonight. Again."

Sollux felt sorry for him. "Well, if you want... I could stay round and keep you company. I'll just sleep on your floor, heh."

"Really?" Eridan's eyes widened. "I ain't had a friend over in years!"

"If it's okay with you." Sollux smiled. He didn't mind staying in a fancy mansion with the adorable Eridan Ampora. He was already eyeing the extensive collection of _XBOX 360 _games that were stacked neatly in the armoire.

"W-well, it's fine by me. But w-weren't you goin' to w-watch a mov-vie w-with your friend Kar?"

Only then did he remember Karkat was waiting for him back home. "Oh, it's okay, I'll send him a text saying that I'm here. He won't mind."

Sollux pulled his phone out from his pocket, and started to text a message to his friend.

_21:00, Saturday _

"hey kk, ii won't be comiing back twoniight, 2tayiing round ed'2 hou2e. 2ee you twomorrow. tell my dad where ii am. 2omethiing came up and ii don't thiink ii can leave ed here on hii2 own. 2orry."

Phew, that was a long message. Send. Sollux placed his phone onto the tea table and took another swig of coffee.

Bzzt. His phone was vibrating.

_21:03, Saturday _

"SOLLUX YOU ARE THE BIGGEST FUCKING FUCKASS EVER. YOU OWE ME BIG TIME WHEN YOU GET BACK."

Yep, that was Karkat alright. He probably didn't care too much; he had the TV all to himself, and he was probably raiding the snacks at that precise moment.

"Yeah, he says it's okay." confirmed Sollux, popping his crappy cell phone back into his pocket. "So, what do you want to do?"

Eridan placed his mug down onto the coaster. "Well, don't mean to brag, but there's plenty to do. We recently got a Jacuzzi installed, and..."

"Holy shit, is there anything you don't have?" Sollux exclaimed excitedly. "Damn. I could really use a relaxing hot tub."

"Jacuzzi it is, then!" Eridan got up. "You can borrow a pair of my swim trunks if you want."

"Yeah, that would probably be an idea." chuckled Sollux awkwardly, "You probably wouldn't want to see me butt-naked, anyway."

Eridan shifted uneasily. "Heh..." he smirked, twiddling with his thumbs. "W-well, not if you don't w-want to."

"Dude, I'm not going to strip off or anything." assured Sollux, flashing the other teen with his trademark crooked grin. God, Eridan was adorable when he got all flustered, but Sollux didn't want to upset him. "Lead the way, ED!"


	8. Chapter 8

They exited the lounge, and went back into the hallway again.

"It's upstairs. In the bathroom." said Eridan, as he started climbing up the tall flight of stairs. Sollux got a brilliant view of his ass as he did so, _and damn, did his butt look nice in skinny jeans... Okay Sollux, stop that. You're supposed to into girls, not guys. But hot damn. _

"You gonna get up here, or are you gonna stare at my arse all day?" Eridan asked, trying hard to hide a cheeky smile. _Shit, was Eridan blatantly trying to flirt with him? _Sollux shook those thoughts from his head. Of course not, he was just having a joke. The taller teen scurried up the staircase, almost tripping up in attempt to get up the stairs as quickly as possible.

The landing was pretty much decorated in the same way as the hallway downstairs. It was just narrower. Eridan pushed open one door and stepped inside.

"Holy FUCK." Sollux gasped with awe at the sheer size of the bathroom. It was huge. Big enough to build a skate park in, he assumed. It kind of looked like one of those ancient Roman bath houses, with its stone tiled walls with mosaic murals patterned into them. The floor was of grey marble slabs. Two chandeliers hung from the ceiling, providing the room with a soft golden glow. There were the normal aspects of a bathroom, a toilet, sink and shower, but there, taking up a large chunk of the room, was the hot tub. The steps leading up to it were made out of slabs of stone, and more slabs surrounded it to make a sort of 'mound' shaped tub. The heat of the room was already getting to Sollux, as he began to remove his clothing.

"Do you want some swimming trunks, or are you just gonna get into my hot tub completely nude?" laughed Eridan, seeing how anticipated he was to get in. "Here."

Eridan turned to a small rack beside the hot tub, and flung a pair of tight black swimming trunks to him, which had been hanging up on the rack. Sollux stared at them with horror.

"Dude. I'm not wearing fucking speedos."Sollux glared at the trunks.

"Suit yourself." Eridan smirked, flashing a sly grin. "It's either them or nothin'."

"Geez, ED, I pretty much only met you today, yet you're forcing me to get naked already?" Sollux removed his glasses to show his mischievous hazel eyes. "Coming on a bit too strong, don't you think?"

Eridan's pale face was coloured red once again. "Cod, Sol, I'm just jokin'. Put these on instead."

Another bundle of fabric was thrust into Sollux's arms. Loose-fitting shorts. That was better. Sollux pulled his shirt off over his head, revealing his tender pink torso. His abs weren't very defined, but they were there. His skateboarding tendencies just about kept the flab at bay, so he was just pretty skinny. His arms hung limply his sides. He was just about to remove his jeans, until Eridan spoke up.

"Hey, so do you w-want me to go somew-where else w-while you're changin'?" Eridan asked, trying to avert his curious blue eyes from Sollux's body.

"Nah, it's fine. We're both guys." Sollux assured him composedly, yanking his trousers down and tossing them into a messy pile on the tiled floor. He was just about to pull his bee-design boxers down when he stopped and looked up at Eridan.

"Aren't you going to get changed?" he asked, rather casually, "Instead of ogling at my sweet bod?"

"Oh, y-yes!" Eridan was shaken from his thoughts. He started to pull off his shirt. While Eridan was struggling to remove his shirt from over his head, Sollux took the moment to swiftly pull off his boxers and slip the swim shorts on. By the time Eridan had taken his shirt off, Sollux was already making a run for the luxurious-looking hot tub.

"Hey, where the fuck do you think you're goin' off in such a hurry?" Eridan swivelled round, projecting a finger at Sollux accusingly with mock annoyance.

"In the tub!" Sollux exclaimed, before bombing into the Jacuzzi. There was a huge tidal wave of a splash, as water splayed out from the sides of the basin and slopped out onto the floor.

"Fuckin' Cod, Sol!" Eridan screeched, gawking at the wet mess on the floor. "Look at the fuckin' floor!"

"Dude, chill!" Sollux draped his arms over the sides of the tub, passing Eridan a relaxed glance. "I'll clean it up later. Life's about having fun! Then you clean up your mistakes."

"That doesn't sound like a very good sayin' to live on." Eridan snapped, tearing off his trousers and his striped scarf and folding them neatly over the clothes rack. He glanced towards Sollux's rumpled pile of clothing, before turning round to Sollux. _In his underwear._

He was wearing a pair of close-fitting briefs, which really did show off his... _bulge_. Not that Sollux expected it to be huge or anything. He looked a lot sexier with his clothes off, Sollux decided, but obviously, he wasn't going to mention that. _Oops, shit, don't let him catch you ogling at his crotch. That wouldn't be good. _Sollux disappeared under the water for a second, and by the time he got back up again, Eridan was already in his swimming trunks, and climbing into the tub. _Aww, I was hoping to catch a glimpse of that choice ass and..._

Sollux shook those dirty thoughts from his head. Eridan scrambled into the tub beside him, stretching his arms out onto the warm slabs of stone surrounding the tub.

"So, I've told you a bit about my life." Eridan began, leaning back on the heated slabs and closing his eyes contentedly. "What's your life like, Sol?"

"It's average, I guess." Sollux replied. Nobody really cared about his life, so it was strange to be asked about it. "I live with my parents and my dog in a shitty three bedroom house. It gets pretty cramped at times."

"Oh. Are your parents nice? It must be nice having them around." Eridan sighed sadly.

"They're always out working, so I'm usually home alone. They even work on Sundays. Normally Karkat comes round to keep me company, but when he's not available I just sit around on my laptop all day with my dog, or go down the skate park to practice my tricks."

"Sounds eventful." Eridan chuckled quietly. Billows of steam rose from the tub, escaping out through the open window into the outside world. "I guess I prefer it when my dad's not here, to be honest. He's a real ass. Sometimes I swear the only reason he even comes home is just to insult me and remind me of how much of a shitstain I am."

"Damn, I'm sorry. Your dad doesn't sound like a nice guy." Sollux replied, leaning back onto the rocky slabs, seating himself onto the underwater ledge that rimmed round the tub. "My dad is usually pretty friendly when he's in. My mum has her cheerful moments, but she always looks tired and fed up. Probably because of work."

"Mhm." Eridan cracked open an eye. "My dad goes out drinkin' a lot. Ever since mum died, he's been drinkin' to drown his worries. He even brings women back to the house sometimes. Not a pretty sight, I can assure you."

"That's pretty bad. Haven't you tried to contact anyone about it?"

"Nope." Eridan rubbed his face with his wet hand, flicking his royal purple fringe out of his eyes. "I don't wanna get anyone involved. I can handle it. He's hardly in anyway, and when he is in, I just avoid him. It's his way of dealin' with grief. I've tried talkin' it over with him, and... It just doesn't work. I'll just live my life, and he can live his."

"But families stick together!" Sollux exclaimed, his voice portraying a tinge of anger. "You... can't just leave him to get on with his life! You're probably the only family he has left."

"Trust me, Sol. I've tried to patch things up." Eridan's voice trembled. "I'v-ve spent my w-whole fuckin' existence tryin' to help my dad. But he keeps pushin' me aw-way! Imagine how-w that fuckin' feels for me? I w-want him to be my dad again. But ev-very time I try to help him, he just fuckin' pushes me aw-way!"

Eridan collapsed into Sollux's chest for another inconsolable sobbing fit. The taller teen just sighed thoughtfully, bringing Eridan in for a tight hug. _The poor guy probably bottles up all of his feelings, and then they just come out like this... He just needs someone there for him when he gets like this. _

"Shh..." hushed Sollux, rubbing Eridan's shoulders with his thumbs. Eridan was literally sitting on his lap now, sobbing loudly into Sollux's chest. "You just go ahead and let it all out."

Sollux felt Eridan's head rub against his skin, as the black-haired teen let out a muffled grunt of acceptance. He was happy that he could be of some emotional support. Sollux hugged him tightly again, not knowing what else to do. The scene would have looked incredibly awkward if they were in public.

After a few minutes of crying, Eridan drew away. "...I'm so fuckin' sorry you'v-ve had to see me like this."

"It's okay, honestly." Sollux offered him a comforting smile. "Karkat gets upset and angry sometimes, and I'm the one who has to console him. I'm used to it."

Eridan let out a slight chuckle. "...Thanks, Sol."

Then suddenly, Sollux felt something soft brush against his parted lips. _Eridan... was kissing him? _Sollux jerked his head back, staringat Eridan in shock.

"Dude, ED!" Sollux managed to splutter out, "W-what wath that thor?"

Tears glazed Eridan's eyes again. "I fuckin' lov-ve you!"

Eridan pushed forward, desperately trying to kiss Sollux again. He was shoved away; not in anger, but in pure shock. The raven-haired teen shrunk back.

"W-what are you doin'?" cried Eridan, obviously surprised by Sollux's reaction. "I... thought you wanted this! You'v-ve been flirtin' w-with me all day!"

"Yeth, I want thith, but not when you're in thith state!" Sollux shouted back at him, a little louder than he would have liked. "It wouldn't feel right!"

Everything was silent. The two stared at each other hopelessly.

"Okay, yes, I have been flirting with you. All day. I admit it." Sollux took a moment to recompose himself. "I think you're fucking adorable. But I think you need me more as a friend right now, than you'll ever need me as anything else. I don't want to fuck up our friendship."

Eridan's bottom lip quivered. "O-okay... I understand..."

"I don't want to bring you into anything while you're like this." said Sollux, elaborating his point. "I think you just need a friend right now."

"Y-yes..." Eridan whimpered softly, "A friend like you..."


	9. Chapter 9

Everything seemed awkward after that. Well, more awkward to Eridan, anyway. After they had gotten dressed, and after Sollux was made to mop up the bathroom floor, the two went downstairs to watch some stupid movie which was on TV. Eridan sat on the far end of the couch, his body tense. Whereas Sollux was sprawled out on the sofa as if it was his own.

"Hey, Sol... You'll probably want to sleep in the guest room tonight, I'm guessin'..." Eridan's tiny voice piped up. "After how stupid I've been..."

"Dude, it's fine." Sollux turned his head to Eridan and gave him a friendly glance. "Your feelings at the time were probably all fucked up. And I'll sleep anywhere, I'll even sleep on your damn porch if that's what you want."

Eridan let out a chuckle. "I didn't mean to spook you out or anythin'... I'm just happy you didn't completely freak out. But does that mean... you're like... gay?"

Sollux's eyebrows furrowed. "I don't really know, to be honest. I kind of like both, but I haven't decided yet. What about you?"

"Yeah, I'm a queer." Eridan smiled shyly, "I'm fine with my sexuality... but I know my dad would disown me if he ever found out I was into guys. I always thought I was into girls."

"I don't know how my parents would respond. They probably wouldn't be best pleased, which kind of upsets me, I guess." Sollux fiddled with his shades. "Most of my friends would probably be okay with it if they knew, Karkat would probably be more wary around me, though, and I don't want that to come between our friendship. He's touchy around the whole relationship subject anyway."

"Oh. I just need to worry about my dad." Eridan said, "I don't really have many friends. I do have Fef, but I haven't spoken to her in a while..."

"Fef?"

"Feferi Peixes. A lovely girl who lived near me before we moved here. She was rich as fuck, her mother owned a huge company. She was probably even richer than my dad. Well, me and her got on pretty well. We looked out for each other. For once, she was like my extended family, someone I could bring my troubles to when I got upset. Her mum wasn't the nicest person around, but she was better than my dad. Then we moved here, far, far away from Fef. I keep in contact with her via Pesterchum, but she doesn't come on much..."

"Ah." Sollux hummed thoughtfully. "But at you get to talk to her a little? It's better than no contact at all."

"Yeah, I guess... I hope she can come down to stay for a weekend soon."

"Mhmm." There was an uncomfortable silence. Until the vibration of Sollux's phone buzzed loudly. He snatched his phone from his pocket; who the hell would be texting him at 11 o'clock?

_23:12, Saturday _

"SOLLUX YOU REALLY NEED TO BE GETTING HOME, IT'S AN EMERGENCY. YOUR MUM CAME HOME AND YOUR DAD STARTED SCREAMING AT HER AND OH MY GOD YOU REALLY NEED TO COME HERE NOW!"

Sollux rolled his eyes, as he texted his response. Karkat sometimes sent him 'emergency situation' texts when he wanted some attention.

_23:13, Saturday _

"kk, calm your tiit2. ii know thii2 ii2 just one of your fake text thiing2. ii'll be home tomorrow, 2o plea2e don't bother me again."

"What's up?" Eridan asked, noticing Sollux's obvious irritation at the text he had just received.

"Just Karkat sending me a bunch of stupid texts." Sollux huffed.

A few seconds later, Sollux received an incoming call.

"SOLLUX!" an earsplittingly loud voice blared through the phone speakers, "DO YOU THINK I'M FUCKING JOKING? LISTEN!"

There was enraged shouting in the background, then a smash of something. "PLEASE! I'VE NEVER SEEN YOUR PARENTS THIS ANGRY! AND I DON'T KNOW WHY!"

The caller hung up. Sollux just stared at his phone.

"I think... you should go home." Eridan sighed. "But give me your number."

"Okay." Sollux and Eridan exchanged phone numbers. "I'll text you when I find out what kind of shit is going down."

"Sure thing. You be careful now!"

Sollux grabbed his skateboard on the way out, and sped down the street, his heart pounding at what he was about to find. He turned into his own road, and up to his house. The door was unlocked, unusually, so Sollux just left his skateboard on the doorstep and walked inside cautiously.


	10. Chapter 10

"Why would you do such a thing?" a voice thundered down the hallway, causing Sollux to shudder. "Did the vows not mean ANYTHING to you?"

Sollux noticed Karkat was huddled at the top of the stairs, knees drawn up to his chest as he listened. He gestured to Sollux, and the taller teen hurried up to join him.

"Dude, KK, what happened?" he asked his shivering friend, draping an arm around his shoulders.

"I think..." Karkat began slowly, "Your mum... s-she's been having an affair and your dad only just found out..."

Sollux couldn't believe it. He thought... his parents loved each other! Why would she do something like that? Sollux's eyes widened.

"Why... would she do something like thsat?" Sollux murmured softly. "W-Why?"

Karkat was silent. He was listening to the heated argument downstairs.

"Right, I've had enough of this!" a strong, masculine voice roared. "Get out of my sight!"

This was followed by inconsolable sobbing, and the harsh sound of the front door slamming shut. Sollux didn't dare move an inch from where he was sitting.

"Ith... over..." Sollux brought his hands up to shroud his face. "My thamily is thucking over..."

"Uh, it'll... be okay, Sollux..." Karkat tried to offer words of comfort and assurance.

"I think... I jusp wanth to be alone..." Sollux's reply was muffled from behind his hands. Karkat nodded; not that Sollux was looking at him, and gave his best friend one last understanding shoulder rub before getting up. "Text me if you want to talk or anything."

Sollux listened as Karkat quietly made his way down the stairs and out of the front door. As soon as he heard the door click, he broke into a sobbing fit of quiet broken gulps.

Sollux remembered he had Eridan's number. With tears still clouding up his vision, he shakily pulled his phone out and brought up the texting screen.

_23:34, Saturday _

"ed, ii thiink my family ii2 falliing to piiece2."

Send. Sollux cradled his phone to his chest, as if it was the most important thing right at that very moment. A minute later, it buzzed, and Sollux wasted no time in checking his messages.

_23:35, Saturday _

"oh cod sol wwhat happened"

_23:35, Saturday _

"my mum cheated on my dad. he told her to get out and now ii don't know where 2he'2 gone. ii don't know what to do."

_23:36, Saturday _

"_do you wwant me to come ovver or somethin or i could come to yours_"

_23:36, Saturday _

"no ii thiink ii'm goiing to 2tay put here, and ii thiink a vii2iitor would up2et my dad, but can you ju2t talk to me, ii'm really 2cared"

_23:37, Saturday _

"_okay sol if it makes you feel any better i wwant you to knoww that i knoww howw youre feelin right now and you can tell me anythin_"

Normally, Sollux wouldn't have put his trust into someone he had just met that day. But he didn't feel that he could turn to anyone else. So he poured his feelings out onto Eridan via text, and stayed up way past midnight sending messages to him, until he drifted off to sleep, curling himself up into a pathetic ball on the landing.


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note : This chapter contains mature content. To read it, visit my tumblr blog (the link can be found on my profile).**


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note : Sorry this hasn't been updated in like a week now. I went back to school this week, and I've been so busy that I haven't had time to write anything at all, unfortunately. Just a little message to say that updates will be a lot less often now, because of exams and shit. Fun fun fun. xD**

* * *

Afterwards, Sollux was flopped out on one of the white couches in Eridan's lounge. He wore an oversized shirt and a pair of plain-white boxers; Eridan had insisted on washing his clothes from the day before.

"Here's your breakfast, sleepyhead." Eridan came in with a pretty tray of various breakfast items, all organized in a perfect position. It was as if he was like a wealthy prince, getting his servant to bring his breakfast in bed. Although it should have really been the other way round.

As Eridan set the tray down on the tea table, Sollux could only gawk at the appetizing-looking food that he was presented with. Two slices of buttered toast, three strips of steaming bacon, two juicy-looking sausages and a dish of scrambled eggs. Not to mention a large mug of piping-hot coffee.

"Damn, ED... You didn't have to make me breakfast." Sollux simpered, poking at a sausage with the fork that was lying neatly on the tray. "I mean, don't you think you did enough for me earlier on?"

"It's not a problem. Hehe, and I kind of enjoyed that too. Guess this is just my way of thankin' you for lettin' me touch your cock."

"Pff, well, it's quite an honour to be allowed to touch this rifle." Sollux took the moment to pat his crotch proudly. Eridan smirked.

"Oh, I don't think it was _that _big..." Eridan teased, curling his thumb and forefinger into a position which was supposed to imitate something indescribably small.

"Oh fuck off, Ampora." laughed Sollux, folding his arms with a forced sulkiness. "Otherwise I won't let you touch it again."

Eridan settled down next to him, as Sollux began to tuck into his breakfast.

"So... did you enjoy that?" Eridan asked, his voice dripping with lust once again.

"Yeff." Sollux was halfway through a mouthful of egg and sausage. "Very mufch."

"Then... would you like to try it again later?" Eridan traced his forefinger on Sollux's shoulder. Sollux swallowed his mouthful and turned to the blue-eyed boy.

"As much as I enjoyed that, I don't really want sexual shit to be the main reason for our relationship." Sollux said, his playful smile fading into a frown. "One step at a time, eh?"

"I suppose..." mumbled Eridan, looking away for a second.

"But once I sort this whole family mess out, I can be like, your own personal plaything." Sollux added, his toothy grin appearing once again.

"Dude, that better be a fuckin' promise." giggled Eridan, leaning back into the plushy sofa.

"Promise."

After finishing his breakfast, Sollux was having a serious think about the previous events, as he lay outstretched on Eridan's sofa. _Am I gay? I really enjoyed that, but... I always thought I liked girls. Maybe Eridan's just a one-off? I don't know how I'd feel about having a serious relationship with him..._

"Hey, Sol, what are you thinkin' about?" Eridan jogged him from his thoughts. "You looked like you were doin' some pretty deep thinkin'."

"Yeah..." Sollux nodded slowly, "Just shit. No need to worry."

"Okay." Eridan's expression indicated that he wasn't fully convinced, but he seemed to shrug it off, as he swapped his concerned frown with his brilliant pearly-white smile. "So, what would you like to do? I mean, if you just want to chill and talk for a bit, that's fine. If that's what you want to do."

"Yeah, that sounds good." Sollux merged into the cushiony fabric of the sofa, snuggling into its luxurious embrace. "I don't feel like doing much, to be honest. I'm still shocked about the whole family shit."

"I can completely understand." Eridan replied, "I felt like that when my mother passed away. I just felt like doin' nothin'. Like a big black shroud just meandered over my life."

"Heh, that's an interesting way of putting it." Sollux chuckled quietly, adjusting the position that his stereoscopic glasses balanced on his face. "I just feel like a big pile of shit has been dumped on my life. But I'm not all arty-farty like you, I guess."

"Hmph." Eridan crossed his arms in mock-like sulk. "Arty-farty? Just because I like to pick my vocabulary carefully. But yeah. You will feel like that. But that 'big pile of shit' will soon disappear."

"I hope so. Otherwise I'm going to be stinking of shit all week." Sollux smirked, giving Eridan a sharp jab to the ribs. Eridan grimaced.

"Cod, Sol, it's a fuckin' metaphor." Eridan jabbed him back.

The two exchanged some playful-spirited banter; Sollux trying to awfully imitate Eridan's accent and Eridan complaining about how much of a filthy street scumbag Sollux was. It ended in the two teenagers engaging in a pathetic slapping strife, exploding into laughter as they tried to defend themselves from the other's incoming attacks.

"Cod, Sol, you're pathetic!" Eridan wheezed, protecting his face with his arms. "Haha, stop it!"

"Pap pap pap, not until you take back that comment you made about my glasses." Sollux grinned, happily fanning Eridan's arms away with his palms. "They're _retro_, not 'gaudy'!"

"Ugh, fine." Eridan sat up, still grinning, as he gently pushed Sollux's invading hands away. He leaned in closer, shoving Sollux down onto the couch. They were so close that their noses were touching; Sollux's chest against his.

"Can I?" Eridan breathed seductively into Sollux's ear, his warm breath tingling as it touched the skin of the taller teen's ear. "I ain't doin' this if you're not okay with it."

"Mmrph..." Sollux grunted. His feelings and thoughts were having a mental conflict inside of his head. _Do I really like him? Am I actually gay? Is this right? _

This time, he listened to his feelings. _Yes. I do._

"Okay..." Sollux murmured, forgetting everything that was bothering him at that precise moment. All he cared about right now was that Eridan was lying on top of him, leaning in closer. Eridan's lips just about brushed Sollux's, when there was a scratchy scrabbling noise coming from the hallway. Eridan jolted off Sollux immediately.


	13. Chapter 13

**Hello, my lovely readers! Sorry for such a slow update. Just to say that this probably won't get updated so often as it used to do. Maybe once every two weeks, more if I have a flash of inspiration. xD**

* * *

"Shit, it's my dad." Eridan quickly composed himself, scooting to the far end of the couch as the sound of the front door clicking open was heard. SLAM.

"ERIDAN!" an aggressive voice boomed. "Where the FUCK are you? You miserable piece of SHIT!"

"Uhh... here, father!" came Eridan's timid reply. Sollux noticed that Eridan's personality had shrunk from the outgoing, bold man he was, to a frightened child. Fumbling footsteps out in the hallway tumbled closer and closer towards them, until the lounge door shot open.

A tall, angry-looking man entered the room. He was like a giant, standing tall at 6'5'', with a head of thin raven hair which was beginning to fade to grey. He was unshaven, and probably would have been mistaken for a rough-looking fellow if not for the expensive-looking suit he was wearing. His face was unsympathetic; etched with hard details and wrinkles that showed his age. His piercing pale-blue eyes shot into Sollux like arrows; scrutinizing him the very second they fell upon him.

"Eridan..." the man's voice uttered slowly at first. "What have I told you... about bringing strangers INTO OUR HOUSE!"

Eridan jerked back. "I-I can explain... I-I'm really sorry, father... I w-will stay out of your sight..."

"You BETTER!" Eridan's father screamed back at him, bulging veins beginning to show in his neck. "And I should HOPE that this STRANGER is less of a FAILURE than you are!"

With that, the man slammed the door and stomped off, presumably into the back garden. Eridan buried his face into his hands.

"Dude, shit..." Sollux huddled up close to Eridan. "Is that... really your dad?"

"Y-yes..." Eridan's reply was muffled; Sollux could tell the shorter teen was desperately trying to hold back the sobbing floodgates. He shuddered under Sollux's touch.

"Your dad's an asshole!" exclaimed Sollux, his voice faltering with anger. Eridan's own father had reduced him to a whimpering child. "He shouldn't be able to treat you like that! That's bullshit!"

Eridan looked up at Sollux with sore eyes. "W-well, there's nothin' I can do... I just gotta take it..."

"No, you're not going to take it!" Sollux shouted, with more force than he would have liked. Seeing Eridan's frightened expression, his voice softened. "Why haven't you moved out? You have more than enough money."

"I can't leave my dad on his ow-wn." Eridan sighed, rubbing circles into his temples with his index fingers. "Yeah, he's an asshole, but he's family. The only family I have left. Sometimes, he comes in completely piss drunk. Sometimes, he passes out in the porch. W-who's the guy w-who has to look out for him? W-who's the guy w-who has to fuckin' see to his ev-very single need w-when he's got the w-worst damn hangov-ver in history? If I'm not there for him, he's got no-one. And ev-ven though he treats me like shit, I can't bear to see him passed out in some sew-wer. Because he's my dad. The only piece of family I hav-ve left."

"ED..." Sollux sighed, bringing the other into his arms. Eridan let his head lean against Sollux's shoulder, as he sobbed softly, rubbing his face forcefully against the sleeve of Sollux's shirt.

After a couple of minutes of Eridan whimpering in Sollux's embrace, the raven-haired boy pushed himself away. "...Sorry, Sol. Again..."

"Trust me, ED, it's fine." Sollux adjusted his glasses, and smiled sympathetically at Eridan. He was rewarded with a watery smile from the other.

"Thank you..." There was an exhausted tone to Eridan's voice. He leaned his head against Sollux's shoulder once again and breathed heavily. The whole room was silent, save for Eridan's deep breathing. "...I feel better now..."

"That's good." Sollux placed his hands upon Eridan's shoulders, gently pushing him up so that he could see the other's tear-stained face. "Well, seeing that your dad's here, do you want to get out for a bit?"

"Y-yes. That would be a good idea..." sniffled Eridan, his face brightening up a bit, but his puffy eyes still remained. "C-can we... go to your house?"

Sollux passed Eridan an unsure glance. "Well, if that's what you really want... Though I warn you, it's nowhere near as fancy as your house. My house is a shit hole."

"As long as it's peaceful and quiet over there." Eridan sighed, "I just want to get away from my dad."

"Okay."


	14. Chapter 14

As Sollux inserted the key into the front door carefully, Eridan took the time to survey the surroundings. No fancy lawn ornaments. No miniature pond. _Cod, not even outdoor lightin'! _Everything just looked plain. Realistic, Eridan thought. A gravelled driveway led up to the doorstep of Sollux's humble house. Nothing special.

"Coming inside, then?" Sollux had pushed open the door, and had stepped inside. "Surely you've seen a common scumbag's house before?"

"I've been surrounded by luxury all my life," said Eridan, removing his expensive shoes on the doorway and following Sollux into the house. "It's all new to me."

"Heh." Sollux walked down the empty corridor, and opened the kitchen door. "Bumble! Come and meet ED!"

A shot of gold fur darted out from the kitchen, jumping up at Sollux, eagerly trying to lick every inch of his exposed skin.

"Oh! A puppy!" Eridan's eyes lit up, shuffling over to pet the dog. "You never said you had any pets, Sol."

"I didn't think it was that important." Sollux shrugged, as Bumble lost interest in trying to knock Sollux to the ground, and instead, began to sniff at Eridan inquisitively. "You like pets?"

"Oh, yes! I love all kinds of animals." Eridan bubbled happily, as he stroked Bumble's thick coat. "We used to have a puppy. Named Caligula, after the Roman emperor, and he was Boykin Spaniel. But my dad developed some allergy to animal furs, so we had to adopt him out. Never saw the poor thing ever again. I think we got Caligula when I was 5, and we had to get rid of him when I was 8. It was like losing a close friend."

"I bet." Sollux sighed sympathetically. "I've had Bumble for quite a while now, I'd hate having to give him up. That sucks."

"Mhm. We do have some non-furry pets, though. My dad loves marine animals, which is why nearly everythin' in my house is nautically themed. He's got a huge aquarium in his bedroom; the thin' is fuckin' huge. It's shaped into one of those Roman columns, and it's tall enough to reach the ceilin'. It's full of my dad's favourite animals; seahorses. It's easy enough to feed the damn things, but cleaning the tank is another matter. My dad usually pays aquarium specialists to come round and check that everythin' is workin' fine. Sometimes, I think he cares about those fuckin' seahorses more than me."

"Hm." Sollux mumbled, "Well, do you have any pets? Or are they all your dad's?"

"Oh, yeah. I have a Diamondback Terrapin called Prince. I keep him in a large tank in my bedroom."

"Are you sure you don't live in a zoo?" Sollux joked. He was jabbed playfully in the ribs. "Those are some fucking exotic pets you've got there."

"I guess you could say that, but I really wish I had a more energetic pet, like a dog or somethin'. Terrapins and seahorses don't do much."

"Well, you can always have a share in Bumble, if you want." Sollux offered. "He's full of energy."

"R-really? Can I take him for walks and stuff with you?" Eridan's face lit up like an excited child. "I miss going for long forest walks with Caligula."

"Sure." Sollux smiled. If going for a simple dog walk made Eridan so happy, then he was all for it. "We can take Bumble out for walkies later. I need to make a phone call to my dad quickly, and check that he's at work. You go and settle yourself in the lounge, and we can play on my PS2."

"Alrighty!" Eridan nodded, disappearing through the door to the lounge, with Bumble following closely at his heels. Sollux pulled his mobile phone from its usual spot in his trouser pocket, and dialled in his dad's work phone number."

Sollux waited impatiently for somebody to pick up, his phone pressed up to his ear. _Beep beep. Beeb beep. _It felt like ages. That bleeping tone echoed through his head; reverberating off the sides of his skull. Until someone picked up.

"H-hello?" Sollux stuttured into the phone, clenching the object tighter.

"Hi there." That voice definitely didn't belong to his dad. It was a raspy, feminine voice. A surge of disappointment struck Sollux, as he realised the person on the other end of the phone was not his dad, but in fact the receptionist at his dad's office. "Is this Sollux, by any chance?"

"Hey, Marquise. Yeah, it's me." Sollux sighed into the speaker. The receptionist's name was Marquise, and she was friends with Sollux's father. She was usually pretty decent, but she could get bitchy when she wanted to. Around the office, she was known as 'the spider', due to her habit of using her charms to 'suck' information off people. As a result of this, she was the office's biggest gossip. "Did my dad come into work today?"

"I can't say I've seen him..." came the crackly reply. "He hasn't checked in today. Hasn't even phoned me to say why he isn't in today."

"Oh, shit." Sollux panicked. "Shit, shit, shith!"

"Sollux, calm down!" Marquise's voice was steady and assuring on the other end. "What's happened?"

"My dadth gone AWOL. He had an argument with my mum lasth nighth, and I haventh thseen him thince then." Sollux was shivering. His dad would never skip a day off work. And if he did, he would call in to explain why he wasn't there.

"Oh, gosh. Well, I'll ask around the office to see if anyone has seen him at all." Marquise replied, her croaky smoker's voice showing a tinge of genuine concern. "Don't you worry. I'm sure he'll be back soon! If you need anything else, make sure you call me."

"Okay, thanth..." Sollux murmured into the phone. There was a short beep; indicating the conversation had been dropped, and Sollux stood there for a while, staring helplessly at his phone.

"Hey, Sol? How do you get your fuckin' TV workin'?" Eridan came wandering out of the lounge with the television remote in his hands. "Oh, Sol, you don't look too good..."

"My dad didn'th turn up at work..." trembled Sollux, not once taking his eyes away from his phone. "They said they haven'th thseen him..."

"I'm sure he'll be fine!" Eridan assured, although he didn't sound fully certain. "You need to stop worryin', it's makin' you all upset."

"I wisth I could." Sollux growled through his crooked teeth. He didn't want hear that 'everything was going to be okay', or that 'he'll be back soon'. Nobody could possibly know what his dad was going to do next. It angered Sollux to no end, and his head began to throb; rhythmical pulses surging through his skull and to his eyes. He rubbed at his eyes feverishly, in some attempt to lower the pain. He often got headaches when he was stressed out. "ED... I don't theel too good..."

His vision began to blur. The migraine was getting to him. He could only hold his hand to his pounding head, and hope that the pain would end soon.


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's Note : Oh look! A wild update! Updates sure are rare these days. Busy busy busy. But I got found some time and inspiration, so here's another chapter for y'all! Oh, and a big thank you to all my loyal readers! It makes me extremely happy to see messages regarding this fic in my inbox! 33**

* * *

Sollux awoke abruptly, his limbs splayed out across frayed fabric. He grunted, blinking to regain his vision.

"Sol? Sol, you're awake!"

Something bent over him, and instinctively, he brought his arms up over his face in some sort of defence. Luckily, it was just Eridan.

"You passed out." Eridan sat down next to him, after Sollux had established that he was now lying on one of the small couches in his lounge. Sollux groaned again. "Cod, I was really worried for you. You've been passed out for almost an hour!"

"Urgh..." Sollux growled, sitting up. "It's okay... It happens sometimes."

"In that case, you should really go and get it checked out." Eridan gave him a concerned look.

"Eh... it's fine. I've learnt to deal with it. I just need some coffee." he grumbled, standing up and proceeding to wander out of the lounge, down the hallway and into the kitchen. A small click, followed by a bubbling symphony indicated that he had switched the kettle on.

"Sol, I'm really worried. It ain't normal to be faintin' regularly like that!" Eridan said, as he walked into the kitchen. Sollux was pouring steaming water into a coffee mug with a picture of a bumble bee on the side.

"I told you, it's fine." Sollux's reply came out a little harsher and snappier than he had wanted, and there was an awkward length of silence between the two, save for the chinking of china and metal, as Sollux stirred his coffee nonchalantly with a stainless steel spoon.

"I'm just worried for you, Sol. Like, I'd be mortified if anythin' happened to you, y'know. You're already goin' through a rough time."

"Yeah, well, I can manage." huffed Sollux, bringing himself up to sit on the kitchen counter. He sipped his coffee slowly. "As I said, it's nothing to be worried about."

"But I am worried! Please, let me take you to the doctors or somethin'!" Eridan exploded, "Please, Sol!"

"For fuck's sake, I don't want anyone else to get involved with something that I can handle!" Sollux shouted back, slamming his mug down onto the marble surface, as a tidal wave of dark brown liquid sloshed over the rim. "I don't want anyone interfering with my already shitty life! Just fuck off, ED! Thuck oth!"

Eridan stared at him like a frightened animal on a highway, his body rigid. His watery blue eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open in shock.

"Fine! If that's the w-way you w-want it!"

Eridan stomped out of the kitchen, down the hall and flung the front door open with such force, it could have ripped it off its hinges. Then, the slammed the door shut as he exited, the echoing noise continued to play in Sollux's head.

"Why..." Sollux trembled, bringing his hands up to his face, "Why... am I alwaths the perthun who thucks things up?"

Tears rolled down his freckled cheeks, as he furiously scrubbed at his eyes. His family was broken. He had no idea where his parents had gone. And now, he had just burnt his newly-blossoming friendship with Eridan Ampora to a crisp. _Who could he turn to now? _He continued to sob grossly into his palms, until his hazel eyes were red and sore.

He snatched his mobile phone from his trouser pocket. Bringing up his contacts list, he scrolled down the orderly selection of names, looking for someone; _anyone, _who he could just talk to get relieve the swirling feeling of sadness that pulsated in the pit of his stomach.

_Karkat Vantas._

Sollux was instantly greeted with a sudden pang of guilt which settled uncomfortably on top of the ever-growing pile of feelings in his stomach. In the excitement of forming a relationship with Eridan, he had forgotten about his 'best friend'. He frowned.

Still, Karkat was just the person he needed right now. That, plus his other contacts didn't seem too appealing to him. Gamzee wasn't too good with the whole sympathy thing. Sollux had told Gamzee his problems before, and to no avail. The dreamy-looking teenager would just smile with that creepy-ass drug-induced grin, and start spouting his philosophy nonsense, which didn't make Sollux feel any better. His parents were listed there too. But both of them seemed to have their phones switched off. Maybe he would just leave them a message...

He decided to text his mother first. He was surprised that her mobile phone was off, because she used it a lot.

_17:50, Sunday_

"_hii mum, are you coming home twoniight? plea2e text me back."_

Ping. Message sent. Sollux sighed, rubbing his eyes as he texted his father.

_17:51, Sunday_

"_iif you get thii2 me22age, dad, plea2e riing me back. ii'm really worriied."_

Ping. Sollux hopped down from the kitchen counter, and wandered out into the hallway. Bumble was curiously lodging his nose into a pair of his grubby shoes. On hearing Sollux walking towards him, the dog bounded into him, licking the palms of his hands affectionately with his slobbery tongue.

The gingery-brown haired teenager was not in the mood for fun and games. He briskly pushed Bumble away, and turned into the lounge. He collapsed into the sofa, and pulled his mobile phone up close.

Bumble loped into the room, confused and slightly upset that Sollux had pushed him away. He sidled up next to the teen on the couch, prodding his wet black nose into whatever he was doing.

"Bumble..." growled Sollux. That was the warning tone. The golden retriever shrunk back, whimpering pathetically. "I'm sorry, boy. I'm just in a shitty mood today."

The dog stared up at him with earnest, caramel-brown eyes, before cocking his head to one side. A wistful grin played upon Sollux's face.

"Oh, Bumble..." he sighed, patting the dog fondly, as he focussed his attention back to his phone. He decided that he would text Karkat.

_17:56, Sunday_

"_hey kk"_

Karkat usually had his phone with him at all times. And he usually responded pretty quickly. Sollux set his crappy cell phone on the armrest of the sofa, and scratched Bumble's head; as a way of apologising for earlier. Bumble, being the loyal hound he was, forgave and forgot. He laid his front paws on Sollux's lap, and flopped out onto the sofa, completely content. The thing that fascinated Sollux about dogs was their pure, unselfish loyalty and eagerness to please. Although Bumble probably didn't even understand his problems, he sure as hell seemed to understand how he was feeling. The dog nuzzled his head into Sollux's lap, as his phone buzzed with a new notification.

_18:00, Sunday_

"_HEY. IT TOOK YOU A LITTLE WHILE FOR YOU TO FINALLY TEXT ME, DIDN'T IT? HOW ARE YOU FEELING?"_

_18:01, Sunday_

"_2orry, ii've been a liittle occupiied. ii'm actually feeliing pretty 2hiit riight now. are you free to come round?"_

_18:03, Sunday_

"_OH, OKAY. YEAH, I CAN COME ROUND. I'LL BE OVER IN FIVE. YOU BETTER NOT BE IN TEARS WHEN I GET THERE. I CAN'T DEAL WITH ANOTHER SOB SESSION, HAHA."_

_18:04, Sunday_

"_another? where have you been, kk?"_

_18:03, Sunday_

"_I WENT ROUND EGBERT'S HOUSE, LIKE 10 MINUTES AGO. HIS BELOVED BOYFRIEND FINALLY BROKE UP WITH HIM, AND I'VE PRETTY MUCH BEEN SIDLED WITH THE JOB OF SOBBING SHOULDER."_

Sollux felt a little bit sorry for the naive teen. Ever since John Egbert had been dating the shady-looking Dave Strider, he had been hopelessly in love with him. The fate was inevitable, but John believed that the other truly loved him, and wouldn't listen to anyone who said otherwise. John was a really nice kid, Sollux just wished that he'd understand one day that relationships aren't the perfect fairytales that they're cracked up to be.

_18:04, Sunday_

"_poor kiid. well, we all 2aw iit comiing. oh well, ii gue22 the fa2te2t way to egbert'2 heart ii2 to offer hiim the kk 2houlder!"_

Sollux chuckled quietly to himself. Karkat had a thing for John; it was painfully obvious by now. Whenever the bucktoothed teen wandered over to talk to them, Karkat would put on a facade of fancy words to try and impress John. John seemed oblivious to Karkat's signs of affection. But Sollux didn't really expect him to, he was naive, after all.

_18:06, Sunday_

"_GOD, SHUT UP, OKAY? I WAS JUST BEING A GOOD FRIEND! THERE'S NOTHING GOING ON BETWEEN US. NOT A THING! SO LET'S DROP THIS FUCKING SUBJECT. I'LL BE ROUND IN FIVE. CONVERSATION DROPPED!"_

Oh, Karkat. _Such a prude._ Sollux's lip curled up into a toothy grin. He slipped his phone back into his pocket, and gave Bumble another stroke. The dog was already snoring away, resting his head upon his paws. Now all he had to do was wait until Karkat turned up at his door.


	16. Chapter 16

Author's Note : Update, yay! Thank you to everyone who's reading my fic once again! :D

* * *

"Greetings, shitstain."

Sollux opened up the front door to see the short, scraggly-looking Karkat Vantas glaring up him.

"Nice to see that you're happy to see me." Sollux ushered him into the house, whacking the back of his head as he slipped past him, as a kind of welcoming.

"Asshole." grunted Karkat, rubbing his head. His expression softened. "So... what's up, I guess?"

"I haven't heard a thing from my dad or my mum." grumbled Sollux, his voice losing its cheery sarcasm. "And I think I made Eridan hate me."

"What, that pompous twit you met down at the park?" growled Karkat, his eyes narrowing. "He's an asshole. You don't need him. You've got me! Best friends forever, remember?"

"Yeah..." sighed Sollux, repositioning where his glasses were placed on the bridge of his nose.

Karkat didn't look convinced. His eyebrows furrowed, giving Sollux a sad look. "You... don't seem too sure. We are still friends... right?"

"Yes, of course." Sollux offered him a hopeless smile. "You'll always be my best friend, KK, but with Eridan I just... feel something different."

Karkat's eyes widened to dinner plates. "I KNEW IT!" he exploded; not in anger, but more in pure shock and hilarity. "It was so obvious! I sensed it from the start! You don't even know how good I am at telling if people like each other."

"Shh!" muttered Sollux, his freckled cheeks rouging. "...Fine, okay. I do have a 'thing' for Eridan Ampora. But you better keep that piece of information to yourself! No blabbing about it to your creepy cat-obsessed friend!"

"Dude, Nepeta's cool about stuff like that. But okay, if you're that riled up about it. I don't even understand what you see in that idiot." Karkat rolled his dark eyes.

"Well, I can't see what you see in Egbert." Sollux grinned, playfully launching his fist into Karkat's shoulder.

"Jesus, shut up about that, okay?" The shorter teen scowled, averting his gaze to the floor. "As I've said to you numerous times before, I DO NOT HAVE ROMANTIC FEELINGS FOR EGBERT!"

"Heh, I'll believe _that _when I see it." Sollux adjusted his specs smartly, flashing Karkat a mischievous toothy grin.

"Ugh, can we just not talk about romantic shit? You know it makes me uncomfortable." the darker-haired teen pinched the bridge of his nose with irritation.

"You only get uncomfortable when it's about _your _romantic affairs."

"God, just shut your fucking trap, okay? Jesus. Right, do you actually want to do something, or are you just going to meander into my personal life?"

"Alright, alright. How about we play some video games or something? Watch TV? Take Bumble out? I don't care, I just think I need to take my mind off things."

"Let's play some video games, I feel like a challenge." Karkat's lips perked up at the prospect of some competitive gameplay. "I'm guessing we'll be playing on that shitty PS1 of yours?"

"Dude, PS1 is epic. Like, it's the God of all classic gaming devices. Don't diss."

"I can't believe you don't have an Xbox. You haven't fucking lived, Captor." Karkat grumbled, as he was led into the lounge, where the console was less-than-neatly set up; its various cables tangled behind the television set. The lounge TV was the biggest one in the house. It was fairly old; it was one of those big, clunky ones with the video slot. However, it was just the perfect size for some intense PS1 gaming, so Sollux wasn't complaining.

"God, are there no decent games on this piece of shit?" Karkat dug through the box of PS1 games. "Gex? Spyro the fucking dragon? What are you, 5 years old or something?"

"Hey, those games are classics!" Sollux snatched the case that Karkat was holding in his hands. He was greeted with the nostalgic cover art of the very first _Crash Bandicoot_ game in all of its pristine glory. The bright orange marsupial on the cover smiled up at him with that huge-ass grin from behind the plastic casing. "KK. We need to play this."

Karkat swivelled round and grimaced at the sight. "Crash Bandicoot? Are you serious? This game sucks ass. It isn't even multiplayer."

"I know for a fact you've never played this chunk of gaming gold in your life, KK, so technically, you have no opinion on how great it is." Sollux popped open the disc slot, opened up the case and carefully placed the CD into the machine. "And that's not a problem. We can just take it in turns. Like, when one person dies, the other person takes over, and so on."

"...Fine." Karkat hugged his knees to his chest. Sollux unravelled the game controller and collapsed into the sofa, as the familiar start-up screen played for the millionth time. Karkat dragged himself over to the couch, and slumped down next to Sollux, his arms tightly folded.

"N. Sanity Beach. Okay, I've got this." Sollux gripped the controller, his tongue poking out from his lips in pure determination.

"Calm down, it's the first level. Plus it's a baby game, so it's not going to be very hard." Karkat snorted. Both of their eyes were glued to the screen, where the ginger-coloured Bandicoot started to navigate its way through the jungle of a level.

"Ugh, this looks so easy." Karkat groaned, leaning back into the sofa, as he watched Sollux defeat some crabby-looking things by spinning them away. "Hey, don't kill the crabs! They're cool!"

"When it's your go, you can decide whether the crabs live or die." Sollux's gaze remained focussed on the game.

"Hmph. The only good thing about this game so far are the crabs." Karkat sulked. "When's it my go? You're never going to die, this game is too easy!"

"Fine, I'll alter the rules a bit." sighed Sollux, as the little orange bandicoot on the screen jumped into the warp panel at the end of the level. He passed the controller to Karkat. "If you die or finish the level, you have to pass the controller over."

The stocky teen's face lit up, as he entered level 2. "I'm going to whip your arse on this."

Sollux rolled his eyes, as Karkat started the level. "What the fuck, the analog stick doesn't work!"

"It doesn't work for this game, you have to use the arrow buttons."

"Jesus Christ, how the fuck do I even..."

Sollux watched as Karkat failed pathetically to move his character. Just then, his mobile phone in his pocket started to buzz, snapping Sollux back to reality. He quickly grabbed the phone. A text message!

_19:12, Sunday_

"_Hi sweetie. I'm so sorry you had to see that. I need some time away from your father and the house, so I'm staying round a friend's house for a bit. Don't worry, we'll sort this all out. None of this is your fault, I made a stupid mistake and now I'm facing the consequences. Just don't worry baby, I'll be home soon. xxx'_

Sollux sighed, rubbing his fingertips into his temples as he brought up the reply menu. At least he had gotten a reply from his mother. But it was his father that he was most worried about.

_19:13, Sunday_

"_okay, cool. do you know iif dad i2 comiing home/where he ii2?"_

He put his phone down on the armrest of the sofa. His mother was slow at texting, so it would be a little while before he got another response.

Karkat seemed to be on the 3rd level now. He hunched over his controller, his face contorted into an expression of concentration, his burgundy eyes fixed on the screen.

"My mum just texted me."

Karkat paused the game, and looked round with an inquiring expression. "Yeah?"

"She's not coming home tonight." Sollux told him. "She's round a friend's house."

"And your dad?"

"I asked her where he is. But no response yet..."

Blip. New message.

_19:17, Sunday_

"_I'm afraid I don't know exactly, seeing as I haven't spoken to him. My best guess is that he's at his friend's house. You'll be okay on your own for a little longer? There's plenty of food in the cupboard, and make sure you feed Bumble. xxx"_

_19:18, Sunday_

"_cool. ii wiill be okay, ii am 18 you know. but come home 2oon, okay?"_

"Alright." Sollux put his mobile phone down again. "Now I'm just waiting for dad to reply to me. If he even has his phone with him..."

"I'm sure he's fine." Karkat assured, placing a friendly hand on the taller teen's shoulder. "Hey, it's your go."

The controller was thrown into Sollux's lap. The hazel-eyed boy picked up from where Karkat had left off, halfway through level 3. He sped through it like a pro, dodging past enemies and gracefully (as gracefully as Crash Bandicoot could be) hopping from platform to platform. Finally, he reached the warp panel at the end of the level, which coincided with the bleep of his phone receiving a new message. He thrust the controller into Karkat's hands before picking up his cell phone and reading the text. This time, the message was from his dad. Sollux breathed a huge sigh of relief, and scanned the text.

_19:18, Sunday_

"_Hi son. Won't be back tonight, am staying at a mate's house. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. Will sort this whole mess out with your mum, so don't bother yourself with it. It'll be okay. Keep your head up."_

At least his dad wasn't doing anything stupid. His friends were generally decently-behaved. Sollux slipped the phone back into his pocket, feeling a tingle of happiness settling in his chest. Both of his parents were fine. He shouldn't worry. His parents didn't want that. Instead, he leant back into the couch, and continued to watch Karkat play. But the feeling of uncertainty settled in his gut. Would his family ever be the same again? Would his parents be able to pick up the pieces? Only time could tell, and Sollux knew this. He would have to wait and see. There was nothing else he could do now. So he turned his attention towards another pressing matter.

_19:25, Sunday_

"_hey ed, ii ju2t wanted to apologii2e for 2nappiing at you earlier. ii'm an a22hole and ii know iit. ii don't want to ruin our friiend2hiip. ii2 there any way to make iit up to you?"_

"Level 5! Get in there!" Karkat exclaimed, to no-one in particular, as he blazed through yet another stage. He didn't seem to want to pass the controller over, but Sollux didn't care; as long as it kept him occupied.

_19:30, Sunday_

"_just to let you knoww i wwont be acceptin any apologies vvia text so you should get your sorry ass ovver to my house and ill think up a suitable punishment for your serious offense"_

Sollux's eyebrows furrowed, his solemn expression slowly cracking into a grin. He could tell from Eridan's sultry sense of humour that the anger from earlier on was slowly fading. Though, he felt that he still needed to make a formal apology.

"Hey, KK." Sollux began, "I'm going to pop out for a bit. Maybe get some more snacks. Are you okay to stay here?"

"Mmph, kay." Karkat's vision was glued to the screen, not daring to remove them for a second. "Bring me back some Pringles, will you? Salt and vinegar. I'm craving something sharp-tasting."

"Uh, sure thing." Sollux had no intention of going to the shops, but he had to at least create a plausible excuse to get out of the house. He usually went off on his own when Karkat was round; more often than not to buy snacks. They knew each other so well that Sollux's house was like a second home to him.

Sollux patted Bumble on the way out, snatched his skateboard that was propped up by the door, and ventured off to Eridan's house.


	17. Chapter 17

"Couldn't stay away, huh?"

Eridan leant against the doorframe, wearing a loose-fitting white t-shirt and baggy purple jeans, along with a thin decorative scarf that hung limply around his shoulders. Sollux noticed that the other's hands were adorned with a quirky collection of rings. Simple gold rings glinted in the light of the ceiling lamps indoors, accompanied by slightly more complex pieces of jewelry; ones with polished amethysts attached, others with yellow quartz. The largest ring of all was worn on the ring finger of his right hand; a simple gold ring with an impressive-looking purple gemstone affixed to it, with two jagged lines engraved into it.

"Nice rings." Sollux murmured, mesmerised by how shiny they were.

"Just came here to gawk at my rings?" Eridan folded his arms, his eyebrows raised. "Don't you have anythin' else to say?"

"Oh, yeah. Right." Sollux was shaken from his thoughts. "I'm sorry I shouted at you earlier. I just got stressed out."

"I forgive you, somehow." Eridan simpered, rolling his eyes. "But that's only the first part. You have to show me that you're really sorry."

"What do you want me to do?" Sollux asked. "I said sorry. Like, what else _am _I supposed to do?"

"Well, I was thinkin' somethin' like this..."

Sollux was yanked inside of the house, and pinned up against the wall. Eridan pressed his body closer to Sollux's, lightly peppering the taller boy's face with delicate kisses. The taller boy pushed him away.

"...What if your dad sees?" breathed Sollux, his once-pale face now flushed with surprise.

"He's out. He won't be back for hours." Eridan pressed a kiss to Sollux's forehead, brushing away the choppy bangs. He wrapped his thin arms around the other boy's shoulders, before locking lips with the exasperated Sollux Captor. Their tongues fought inside the hot, saturated cavern of Sollux's mouth passionately, showing no signs of either of them giving up any time soon.

Sollux drew back, his glasses tilted slightly on the bridge of his nose. "...This is... how I'm supposed to... show I'm sorry?"

"Yep." Eridan nudged the other against the wood-panelled wall once again. "This is the only form of apology I'll be acceptin'."

"Sloppy make-outs, then?" Sollux wiped the side of his mouth with the back of his hand. If this was how the pompous twit wanted his 'formal apology', Sollux was going to deliver it.

He fought back, forcing his tongue past Eridan's lips and battling the other's wet muscle. Eridan, caught off guard by the sudden change in pace, jolted back, but their lips remained firmly locked together. He stumbled backwards in the hallway, with Sollux attached to his face; who was unwilling to let go.

That was when Eridan managed to trip over some unnoticeable object, sending them ricocheting to the floor with a painful-sounding thud. They were now just a tangled mess of limbs. Eridan had been the one to break Sollux's fall; and the trip had seemed to work in the ginger-haired boy's favour, as he pinned the shorter teen to the ground and continued to invade his mouth. Eridan batted Sollux's face away playfully, his jet black hair spread about his face on the ground; curled cowlicks jutting out from his mane. His pale face was now lit with a rosy hue; like Christmas illuminations, and his eyes were half-lidded as he gazed up passionately to his love interest. Sollux took a moment to appreciate how precious Eridan really was. He was like a doll. _His_ doll.

Sollux slowed down, removing his tongue from the other's mouth, reverting to pressing gentle kisses onto Eridan's soft lips.

"W-well, that w-was certainly a change of pace." Eridan stammered; in between carefully-placed pecks.

"Well, I have to treat you gently sometimes." Sollux smiled down at him, taking the other's chin into one hand and tilting it upwards. "You're... special, I guess. Special to me. Not like all the others."

"The others?" Eridan slid out from underneath Sollux's weight, and sat cross-legged beside him.

"Yeah. I won't lie to you. I have had... other relationships before. They meant nothing to me. All I wanted from them was sex. Casual relationships."

"So... You've 'done it' before?" Eridan adjusted his oversized glasses and glanced to the ground awkwardly. He fiddled with the end of the scarf which hung by his side.

"Yeah. Only with girls, though. It was nice, but I got bored of it." Sollux quickly noticed that Eridan was getting worked up. "...You're a virgin?"

"Agh, you make it sound like it's a bad thing." The bespectacled teenager grumbled, bringing his knees to his chest and hugging them to his body.

"No, no! It's not a bad thing! I'm just surprised. I would have thought guys and girls would be all over you. You're fucking adorable. You should be covered in bitches." Sollux assured. Eridan offered him a nervous grin.

"As true as that may be, most people tend to avoid me." Eridan replied. "Though, a second ago, I was covered in one rather hefty bitch."

"Asshole!" Sollux gave Eridan a shove. "I was complimenting you, dickhead. Anyway, being a virgin is nothing to be ashamed of."

"Hmph." Eridan hugged his knees closer to his chest. "So I'm a 'special case', then?"

"Yeah. I guess." Sollux scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "With the others, I just wanted sex. But with you... it's like sex is the last thing on my mind."

"Is that the real reason behind the fact you don't wanna do anythin' intimate with me?" Eridan asked, his watery blue eyes wide with curiosity.

"Sort of. It's definitely a major factor. But family issues are also getting in the way of it, I don't think I could settle down with you until it's sorted. Relationships just don't work when there's something else on my mind, and I _really _don't want to fuck it up. Like with my previous girlfriends. I actually feel something for you, and I don't want to mess it up before it's even started."

"Okay." Eridan looked at the other earnestly. "I guess I understand..."

"Don't get upset, ED." Sollux leant in for another kiss, their lips brushing tenderly, "I need to take things slowly. You mean a lot to me, and I need to sort my head out before we become 'a thing'."

"...Okay..." murmured Eridan, his eyes lidded as they drew back from the kiss. He really was precious. Sollux adored every aspect of the raven-haired teen; his ridiculous glasses, his lightly-freckled skin, even the stupid flamboyant streak of purple in his fringe. He loved everything about him, and he wasn't about to lose him.


	18. Chapter 18

**Aut****hor's Note : Ohyay, update! I tried to make this one a bit longer than my average chapter; I'm just a slow writer. The only reason I tend to keep them short is because otherwise, the fic will go for weeks without an update. xD **

**Just to say, I love getting reviews and comments! If you have any improvements/crits that you think would benefit this fic, please let me know! I want people to enjoy my fiction. (:**

* * *

"Right, I think I need to be getting off soon. KK's back at my place, and he thinks I've gone out to get Pringles when in fact I've been shoving my tongue down your throat." Sollux said, pulling his mobile phone out to check the time.

"Aw, you can't stay?" Eridan seemed genuinely disappointed, his once-neutral straight-line of a mouth dipping into a saddened frown. "I was somewhat enjoyin' your company, y'know."

Sollux winced, baring his crooked teeth. "Where's that cute smile gone? C'mon, ED. I can come and see you tomorrow."

"Can't I come home with you?" Eridan pleaded, throwing Sollux the most tear-jerking, heart-wrenching puppy face in existence; complete with a quivering bottom lip and big, dopey eyes. "Don't leave me here..."

God, Eridan was a _fantastic _drama queen. And Sollux knew deep down that it was all an act. But no, his heart was going to be all soppy and give in. "Jesus, fine! Just don't irritate KK, alright? You're not in his good books, so don't push it."

"I'll have to pull that trick every time I want somethin' out of you." Eridan purred snidely. "You just plummet for the Ampora sulk."

"Shut it, fishface." growled Sollux, wheeling his eyes behind the pair of stereoscopic glasses perched on his nose.

"_Fishface_?" Eridan's voice rose with mock offense. "And may I ask how you came up with _that _curious moniker?"

"Well, you know... you always wear marine-inspired clothes, and when you sulk, you kind of look like a fish. Like, your eyes get all big and glazey."

"Hmph!" Eridan harrumphed, flicking the tail of his thin scarf behind him. "You can keep your silly infantile nicknames. Anyway, I'm goin' upstairs to pack my overnight suitcase and change my clothes. Wanna come and watch?~"

"Jesus Christ, no! I've seen enough of your bulge today." Sollux exclaimed, cringing at how Eridan had attempted to force out the last sentence as if he was some kind of raunchy porn star. Which was the biggest turn-off ever. The violet-fringed boy was much hotter when he wasn't trying to force anything. "Who said you were staying overnight?"

"Geez, Sol, way to ruin the mood." Eridan sniffed daintily, "And I said so. You don't want to face the _fishface_ again, do you? I'll be down in about five minutes. Stay put here; don't be pokin' your nose into anythin'."

"Fine." grumbled Sollux, taking his mobile phone from his pocket, as Eridan disappeared up the staircase, and presumably into his bedroom to pack his things.

Sollux punched in Karkat's phone number, and brought up the text messaging screen. Hopefully that idiot wasn't consumed enough in orange marsupial shenanigans to not answer his messages.

_20:05, Sunday_

"_ii 2hall return 2oon briingiing offeriing2 of viinegary goodne22. oh, and ed ii2 2tayiing over too. don't complaiin."_

_Bleep. _Message sent. Sollux took another glance at the grand family portrait of Eridan and his parents. It pretty much looked like a typical family scene. His father looked stern with his tidy mass of combed-back caliginous hair, but there was an element of pride in his hard expression; he was proud of his family. This man definitely fitted the image of a true gentleman. And Sollux couldn't believe this was the same man that would make his own 18-year old son burst into tears.

_20:06, Sunday_

"_JESUS CHRIST, NOT THE PRINCE OF DOPE. YOU BETTER HAVE BOUGHT THE LARGEST TUBE, BECAUSE I'M GOING TO HAVE TO NUMB THE PAIN OF HAVING THAT ASSWIPE AROUND WITH THE SHARP, TANGY FLAVOUR OF SALT AND VINEGAR PRINGLES."_

Okay, so Karkat wasn't too emotionally traumatized about having Eridan over. That was good. At that moment, Eridan came clattering down the stairs, dragging a heavy-looking suitcase behind him.

"Holy shit, ED! You don't need _that _much stuff, surely?" Sollux couldn't believe his eyes. The suitcase was probably almost the same height as Eridan, and was coloured purple, with tiny, anime-esque seahorses printed on it. Eridan had chosen to exchange his previous casual look for something that made him really look like _the Prince of Dope_.A bright purple t-shirt with a cartoony image a florescent green Loch Ness Monster plastered onto the front. It was _tacky_. Tight-fitting, obnoxiously-green jeans clamped firmly around his thighs, boasting a brilliant view of his choice ass. He had swapped the dull scarf for a purple-and-green chequered neckerchief, which again, hung loosely around his neck, and was now wearing a pair of shiny green sneakers. The only thing that hadn't been changed were his stupid, thickly-rimmed hipster glasses, which remained unchanged on his lightly-freckled face.

Sollux cringed. _What a fishface. _

"Of course I'm goin' to be needin' all this! I have to be prepared for all the horrors I might face at your place. There's my hairspray and hairdryer, my collection of combs, my scarves, pyjamas, shampoo..."

"Okay, I get it. You're bringing the whole cosmetics shop along with you." Sollux groaned into his palms. "Do you at least have a tube of Salt and Vinegar Pringles? I promised KK I'd get him some."

"Yeah, there's some in the kitchen. Let me grab them." Eridan lugged his case down the final stair, before disappearing through one of the doors, leaving his gigantic suitcase in the hallway.

Sollux took one last look at the portrait on the wall. It seemed like the perfect family. _So, that's the effect that deaths have on lives, huh? Death destroys love. I guess that's why ED's dad is such an asshole to him... He's never gotten over it..._

Eridan came bounding out, with an armful of snacks in his arms. A tube of Salt and Vinegar Pringles; as per Karkat's request, a litre bottle of Coca-Cola, a huge family-sized packet of Haribo sweets, just to name a few of the items he'd brought back with him.

"Damn, your dad keeps your house well-stocked with shit." remarked Sollux, eying the pile of goodies in Eridan's arms. "How are you planning to carry all of that, supposing your suitcase of _essentials _is full?"

Eridan frowned. "There's plenty of room for this stuff."

The scarf-clad boy unzipped the suitcase, and shoved the snacks inside. He dragged it towards the door by the little extendable handle attached to the case. Luckily for him, the suitcase had wheels, so it was a tad easier to pull along. Sollux muttered inaudibly to himself, before picking up his skateboard, propped up beside the front door. He flung open the door, allowing Eridan to get past.

"Do you want to lock up or anything?" Sollux asked, setting his skateboard down on the outdoor porch flooring.

"Just shut the door; it locks automatically. My dad will be able to get in, he always does." Eridan replied, pulling the suitcase along, down the steps of the porch and onto the gravelled path. The sun was beginning to set as the two exited the front garden.

"Hey Sol, my arms are tired from pullin' this case. Wanna pull it for me?" Eridan whinged, pitifully yanking the suitcase along the concrete pavement. Sollux grumbled.

"You're so useless..." he grunted, dismounting his skateboard to take over where Eridan had left off; approximately 10 metres from the front door. Eridan hurried over to Sollux's skateboard, carefully stepping on and off it as some kind of test to check whether it was safe or not. Sollux pinched the bridge of his nose before taking hold of the handle and dragging it down the pavement. It wasn't particularly light, but the suitcase was very well made, and the wheels provided a little next to no friction between the wheels and the ground; meaning the case rolled along smoothly. "ED, there is no way that you could be tired from pulling this for less than a minute. You're just a lazy fishface."

"You're obeyin' my every command this evening." smirked Eridan, planting his left foot securely on the board. He rolled it across the grit to test it, before speeding up with his other foot. The teenager whizzed around in front of Sollux, bubbling happily to himself. Until he skidded a little too close to the curb, and ended up lying in a pathetic heap in the road. Sollux ambled over.

"See, this is what happens when you fuck about with my skateboard." he sighed, as Eridan grumpily picked the grit from his newly-grazed knee, slightly irritated over the fact that his tight green jeans were now ripped down one side due to his little fall. Sollux picked up his upturned skateboard, which was lying abandoned beside Eridan; who was now clutching his knee. He slipped it underneath his arm.

"Hey, w-what about me?" sniffled Eridan, adjusting his glasses. "I probably can't w-walk!"

"Jesus." Sollux hoisted him up bridal-style into his arms, and plonked him onto the edge of the huge suitcase. "Hold on tight. Because I'm not going to pick your sorry arse off the curb again if you fall."

So, that was one of the things Sollux never imagined he'd ever have to do. Having to pull his love interest to his house on top of a suitcase. _Crazy shit happens when you're in love._

They soon reached Sollux's house. The lights in the living room were on, indicating Karkat was still there and didn't get fed up waiting for his beloved Pringles. The gingery-brown haired teen fumbled in his trouser pocket for the front door key, and on finding it, plunged it into the keyhole, almost knocking the door down in anticipation to get inside. Eridan hopped off the suitcase, cringing slightly from his grazed knee. Sollux dragged the massive case inside, with Eridan following close behind.

"God, finally, you decided to show up." Karkat poked his scowling face around the living room doorframe. "I'm on level 18. Shit's getting intense, for sure. I hope you brought those Pringles, because I'm getting a craving that only the mouth-watering flavour of Salt and Vinegar can satisfy."

Karkat didn't seem to bat an eyelid at Eridan's presence. He didn't even make a brash comment on the dark-haired teen's wardrobe malfunction.

"Yeah, we got them. Plus a load of other shit too, courtesy of ED here. You should thank him, because he's the only thing keeping you from starving of hunger tonight."

"Awesome. Just drop it in a pile on the living room floor or something." Karkat went back to his gaming. Eridan did the honours of taking his humongous suitcase into the living room, and began to produce a heap of junk food in the centre of the carpet. Karkat's eyes widened to saucers and he watched the kneeling boy continue to pull out random packets of processed snacks from his case. It was like the never-ending mountain of junk food. Karkat let the game controller; the very same he had clutched tightly with determination, fall onto the floor from his limp hands, as he crawled over to the snack pile, awestruck. "I think I've died and gone to calorie heaven..."

Pop! Karkat launched the flimsy plastic lid off the first tube of Pringles, before ripping open the papery seal which separated him from the crunchy goodness that awaited him inside. He plunged a hand inside the tube, pulling out a fistful of crisps and shoving them into his mouth. He munched away; a look of pure contentedness momentarily shining through his usual miserable expression.

"I'm guessin' this is his way of bein' grateful?" Eridan looked up to Sollux, who responded with a slow nod. Bumble trotted into the room happily, pleased to see that his owner had returned safely and had brought along a friend. After giving Sollux a few sloppy face lick greetings, Bumble loped up to Eridan and lapped at his stray hand affectionately. No matter who came home with him; if they were a friend of Sollux's, they were, by default, a friend of Bumble's.

"Aw, I can't get over how fuckin' cute your dog is, Sol." Eridan cooed, ruffling the Golden Retriever's honey-coloured fur. "He looks so happy!"

"He's happy because someone's finally paying attention to him." chuckled Sollux. "KK doesn't bother much with him. He doesn't like dogs. I think he's scared of them."

"Fuck off! Of course I'm not afraid of dogs!" Karkat was quick to throw back a reply through a mouthful of crispy junk food. "Your dog just slobbers over everything and runs into people. I'd rather not be knocked over by some big ass mutt, thank you very much!"

"Aw, he's just happy to see you, KK!" grinned Sollux, settling down next to Karkat on the carpet, and helping himself to a handful of Pringles. "Maybe we can take Bumble for a walk later. The poor boy's been locked up in the house all day."

"That would be lovely!" Eridan gave the enthusiastic dog one last pat before turning to Sollux. "May I ask where I'll be sleepin' tonight?"

"Depends. KK, are you staying over?" Sollux asked the pudgy teenager sitting cross-legged beside him; who had resumed his game. Karkat grumbled to himself, before pausing the game once again.

"Depends if you two are going to be eating each other's faces off." Karkat muttered. Sollux's face turned a shade darker.

"Jesuth Chrith..." Sollux mumbled, losing his cool composure.

"I can assure you that there will be none of that happenin'." Eridan quickly stepped in.

"Well, there better not be." Karkat seemed unfazed, and switched back to his game. "I'll be staying round. My mum's having some shitty girly party at our house, and quite frankly, I'd rather not be there."

"Okay. In that case, we might as well sleep down here. My room is kind of small. It just about fits Karkat's fat arse in."

"Oi! My rump is perfectly formed, without a smidgen of flab in sight. So shut the fuck up." Karkat snapped from over his shoulder.

"Right, come on, ED. KK is clearly physically-attached to his game, so we need to go upstairs and get some pillows. And some other shit."

The two ventured up the stairs, and into Sollux's bedroom.

"Right. You can sleep on the sofa, KK will be sleeping on his inflatable mattress – which is right over there, and I'll sleep on the carpet. Grab those beanbags and my duvet, and..."

"I'm not lettin' you sleep on the floor, Sol. You can sleep on the sofa."

"It's fine, seriously. You're the guest, so you get the best stuff." Sollux yanked Karkat's buoyant mattress and heaved it up onto his shoulders. "Besides, I'm used to sleeping on our shitty carpet. It's okay."

"Hmph..." muttered Eridan softly; almost thoughtfully. The purple-fringed teen snatched the blue and red beanbags, along with Sollux's duvet, before exiting the room. Sollux grabbed the remaining items; some pillows and another blanket, and followed Eridan downstairs.


	19. Chapter 19

**Author's Note : Wow, it took me a little while to finish this chapter. Mainly because I was stumped for ideas, and I got a little bit of a writer's block, haha. But yeah, hope you enjoy it! Updates will still be as slow as ever, because I have exams and shit to revise for. _ Anyway, comments/critiques/favourites are always welcome!**

* * *

Sollux managed to not fall down the stairs while carrying Karkat's mattress and duvet, and threw the bouncy object into the living room. He pushed it with his foot towards the three-seater couch. He threw the blanket over the mattress, and tossed a pillow at the end for good measure. Sollux glanced up to the three-seater sofa; where Eridan had already prepared it nicely; the blanket covered up the frayed fabric of the couch nicely, and the pillow on the armrest had been fluffed up. Eridan was sitting on the far end of the couch, so Sollux settled down next to him.

"So, what are we doin'? Just watchin' Kar play Crash the fuckin' rat?" Eridan grumbled. "Not much of a sleepover."

"For your information, it's Crash Bandicoot." Sollux corrected. "Well, let's see. We could watch a movie, or..."

"You're not watching a movie until I'm done with this." Karkat practically yelled from across the room, glaring at the monitor in maximum-concentration mode. "Why don't you go and take that stupid dog of yours for a walk?"

"Oh yeah! That'd be an idea." Sollux replied, "It'd be best to get Bumble's walk out of the way while it's still light. Here, boy! Walkies!"

Bumble had been busy sniffing the pile of snacks, before Sollux called him over. His ears pricked up with excitement at the prospect of going on a walk.

"Okay, let's just clip your lead on..." Sollux mumbled to himself, grabbing an old length of leather, which was really showing its age. Its once bright red colouration had faded to a rather pathetic-looking shade of burgundy, and various rips indicated it was destined towards the bin. Sollux had wanted to buy a brand-new one, but his father had been rather uncooperative about getting one. It was his birthday soon anyway, so he could easily buy a new lead with his birthday money. With a loud click, the lead snapped onto Bumble's collar.

"You ready, ED?" Sollux called to Eridan; who was taking a hoodie out from his suitcase. The blue-eyed teen quickly slipped it on, and hurried over to Sollux and the dog; who was waiting as patiently as he could to get outside. "Okay, KK, we'll see you later!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Karkat was already being consumed into his game once again. Sollux sighed, before exiting the lounge and leading out through the front door.

It has been a pleasant summer in the south of England. The evening air was humid; warm, but breathable. Sollux stepped out onto the driveway, and admired the view. His street didn't seem as much of a shithole when the weather was nice. He could just about notice the sun disappearing behind the endless rows of flats on the opposite side of the street; the sky was dappled with glorious hues of oranges, pinks and pale blues. He held the tattered end of the dog lead limply in one hand, and shoved the other into the front pocket of his red-and-blue skull hoodie. Eridan stumbled out after him, closing the door.

"Cod, it's fuckin' hot out here. Can I put my hoodie back inside?" Eridan grumbled. Sollux shook his head. "ED, we just left the house and now you want to go back? No."

"Ngh..." growled Eridan. But then his expression softened. Slowly, the light-skinned teen slipped his hand into Sollux's hoodie pocket, grabbing hold of the taller boy's hand. He rested his head upon Sollux's broad shoulders, gazing up to him affectionately.

"Knock it off, will you?" Sollux grouched, "You'll give people the wrong idea. Geez."

"Sol, there's no-one here, so quit worryin'!" Eridan's head remained on Sollux's shoulder, as their fingers entwined. "You worry too much, y'know that?"

"Yeah, so what if I do? I'm saving you from a whole lot of trouble. The people here aren't exactly gay-friendly."

"I don't care what people think. They can all sod off for all I care." Eridan nuzzled Sollux's shoulder, and clutched the other's hand tighter.

Sollux remained silent, as he started to walk down the road, with Eridan still leaning on his shoulder. Bumble trotted happily beside him, at just the right pace. Soon, Eridan lifted his head from the taller boy's shoulder, but he still held his hand firmly as they walked. Eventually, they reached the park; where Sollux did most of his skating. The honey-brown haired teen unclipped Bumble's lead when they came to the enclosed area of grassland, allowing the dog to bound freely through the meadow. He sat down on the grass, gesturing for Eridan to join him.

"So you just let him off in the park? Not much of a walk, is it?" chuckled Eridan, settling down beside him on the dry grass. "What now?"

"We wait until he gets bored. Which shouldn't be too long. Bumble doesn't really need that much exercise."

Eridan mumbled some kind of response. Without warning, he turned Sollux's face towards him and pressed a delicately-placed kiss to the other's lips.

"What was that for?" Sollux grinned, taking hold of Eridan's hands.

"Cod, I can't believe we're not officially a couple yet." whinged the raven-haired boy, placing another kiss onto Sollux's face. "You're killin' me, Sol. You really are."

"Jesus, if being in an official relationship means so much to you, then fine." Sollux began, rolling his eyes. "From this day forward, I hereby declare that my official title will be boyfriend to the fucking asshole that is Eridan Ampora. Are you happy now, you pompous twit?"

"Yes, I'm as happy as a fuckin' clam." Eridan smiled, his perfectly-white grin shining through. He rewarded Sollux with another peck; this time on the boy's rouged cheeks. Sollux's grimacing expression couldn't help but crack when Eridan smiled.

Eridan rolled back beside him on the grass, and stared up the evening sky. "I love you, Sol."

"Jesus, ED, stop being all cheesy." Sollux groaned. Eridan bit his lip with annoyance.

"It's a rule that if your boyfriend says he loves you, you gotta say it back~" Eridan hummed, rolling back on top of Sollux and towering over him; his eyebrows raised.

"Fuck no!" Sollux exclaimed, almost as if he was disgusted by the sheer thought of expressing love verbally. "I'm not pathetic enough to render myself to that state!"

"Say it..." Eridan purred into the taller teen's ear, nipping at his cheeks once again.

"Fuck off, you fishface!" Sollux laughed as he wrestled with Eridan on the grass.

"Don't call me fishface!" Eridan continued to peck at his boyfriend's face, giggling like an overexcited schoolgirl. Eventually, the raven-haired boy was thrown off.

"Fine. I love you too..." grumbled Sollux, his cheeks pricking with embarrassment. Eridan seemed enthralled, and launched himself into the skinnier lad's arms. For once, life didn't seem as shitty, as the couple lay there in the meadow, staring up into the endless sky. A pleasant breeze tickled their exposed skin as Eridan curled up next to Sollux, sighing with utter content.

This pleasant scene was soon interrupted, as Sollux was pounced upon by a rather soggy hound.

"Aw, for fuck's sake, Bumble!" Sollux exclaimed with horror, as the dog tracked its large, muddy paw prints all over the front of the teen's once adequately clean hoodie. "Bad dog! Why do you always have to dive into the lake? It's not a damn swimming pool! God..."

Eridan sat up, trying to hold back his schoolgirl giggles. "Dogs will be dogs, I guess. You can give him a bath when we get back."

"Ugh, yeah, okay. I'll just spray him down with the garden hose. Pigs will fly on the day that Bumble sits still long enough in the bathtub for me to wash him properly." Sollux dragged himself away from the dog, before snapping the battered lead back on Bumble's collar. "We better get going, then. KK will be getting lonely."

"Okay." Eridan slipped his hand into Sollux's once again, his delicate fingertips clutching hold of the other's hand as if he never wanted to let go. They ambled along down the path, hand in hand, with Bumble; who was still dripping wet from his little swim in the local lake, dutifully padding beside his owner.

"SKREEEEEE!"

Before he even had time to respond, Sollux was tackled to the ground by some unknown object. His glasses had been knocked askew as he lay defeated on the gravel.

"The hunter pounces upon her prey! Hehe!"

Sollux definitely recognised that dainty, yet playful tone of voice. His vision started to clear, and the shape that sat on his chest became recognisable.

A short, petite-looking girl with a head of tangled dark chocolate-brown hair. The tips of her flyaway curls had been dyed a bright, fluorescent green; which stuck out in random places, and upon her messy mane, rested a baggy blue beanie hat; which supposedly resembled a cat? Eyes and a mouth had been sewn onto the front of the hat in white thread, and two ridiculous felt cat ears had been attached to both sides of it. She was small in stature, but definitely had some sort of strength hidden in that tiny frame of hers; for she was able to knock Sollux to the ground. She wore an olive-green overcoat; that was about six sizes too big, along with a pair of loose-fitting grey jeans.

"What do you think you're doin'? Get off him!" Eridan exploded, getting very defensive over his beloved boyfriend.

"ED, chill." sighed Sollux, as the mysterious girl pawed at his muddy hoodie inquisitively. "It's just one of KK's stupid friends."

"Rude!" growled the girl, patting down Sollux's hoodie with a fingerless-gloved hand. "Did you already forget my name? You're such a silly, Pawlux! My name is Nepeta, and you better remember it!"

Nepeta rolled off Sollux, and looked up at Eridan. "The hunter gazes curiously up to the strange hipster boy and wonders what he calls himself!"

"...What?" Eridan's eyes narrowed. This girl was incredibly weird.

"She likes roleplaying or some shit. Like, she thinks she's a cat or something." Sollux picked himself up off the ground, and grabbed hold of Bumble's lead which was lying astray beside him. Luckily, Bumble didn't take advantage of that unfortunate moment by running off. "Just tell her your name, and maybe she'll decide to be weird somewhere else."

"Oh, right." Eridan cleared his throat rather grandly. "My name is Eridan Ampora, not that it has anythin' to do with you."

"Ampurra!" Nepeta hummed affectionately, her round, green eyes widened. "I saw you two holding hands! Pawlux, you really chose a cute boyfriend!"

"God, ED, I told you no public displays of affection..." grumbled Sollux, pressing his fingertips firmly against his temples. "Out of all the homophobes here, I get a creepy cat girl come up to us..."

"Does that mean you're a thing now?" asked Nepeta excitedly, taking out a notepad from her _Hello Kitty _handbag. "Can I add you to the ever-growing shipping wall?"

"Christ no! You know how I feel about your bloody shipping wal..."

Too late. The beanie-donned girl had already brought out her matching pink _Hello Kitty _ballpoint pen, and was furiously scribbling down notes onto the lined paper.

"Pawlux Catpor and Eridan Ampurra! This ship will sail! I can feel it!" she bubbled to nobody in particular.

"Ugh." muttered Sollux. Then he decided to swiftly change the subject. "Well, anyway, we've got to get back home. KK is waiting for us, and..."

"Karkitty?" Nepeta's eyes lit up. "Can I come? Purr-lease? I came out here waiting for my best buddy Equius, but he hasn't shown up yet..."

Sollux didn't exactly like the idea of Nepeta following them home. "Uh, I'm sure he'll turn up. You just have to be patient, I guess. Why don't you go off and roleplay or something? You're, um, good at roleplaying."

"Oh yeah!" Nepeta instantly forgot about what she was thinking about. "The hunter prowls away, in search for her prey! See you later, Pawlux and Ampurra!"

The short girl bounced off, as Sollux rubbed at his eyes weakly. "And I thought she'd never go away."

"What a fuckin' weirdo!" Eridan exclaimed; when he was sure that she was far enough away to not hear him. "What the hell does she think she's wearin'?"

"Well, you're the one to talk." Sollux replied snidely, and was rewarded with a jab to the ribs. "We better hurry, in case she comes back!"


	20. Chapter 20

**Author Note : Sorry for the slow update! I was pretty put off from updating after finding out the admins were going through M-rated fics and deleting the explicit ones (which of course, Cityscraped falls under that category, *prods chapter 11* so I was contemplating giving up the fic altogether because of that). But after getting a burst of inspiration, I rounded off this chapter! It's pretty short, so I apologise in advance. ;w;**

**Oh, which brings me to an important point! I have now created a tumblr account where I will be posting all the chapters of Cityscraped. The account called 'glitterfics'! Because of the explicit content purge, you will only be able to find the chapters with explicit stuff in them on my tumblr. Thanks for reading this long note! **

* * *

Before they knew it, they were back at the house. Luckily for them, they didn't encounter any more cat-obsessed shipper girls on the way back. It was getting rather late now; the orange-pink sky had faded into a light steely-blue canvas, specked with the faint pale yellow glow from the distant stars above, that were just beginning to shine through. It wasn't exactly a chilly night, but Eridan shrunk into the warm fleece of his hoodie and squeezed Sollux's hand tighter, as the ginger-brown haired teen fumbled with the key. At last, the front door swung open, and the two teenagers stepped into the house. Bumble padded in as well, tracking sets of muddy paw prints onto the floor. Sollux grumbled.

"You want to help me hose him down?" he sighed, pulling the dog towards the kitchen. "When my dad _does _come back, he won't be too happy to see that I let Bumble go in the lake."

"Hidin' any evidence, eh?" chuckled Eridan, following Sollux and the sopping wet retriever out into the garden, via the back door.

There was a hosepipe lying in a tangled heap on the floor, beside the door. Sollux picked it up, and proceeded to switch the water on with the tap on the wall. It took a moment to start up, but soon enough, a continuous jet of water spurted from the pipe; almost hitting Eridan until Sollux could control the stream.

Bumble was cleaned up fairly quickly; leaving only a soggy mess of mud on the patio. After rubbing him down with a towel which was conveniently placed in the kitchen, the golden retriever was sparkling clean; free from any kind of dirt. Sollux quickly ushered him inside the house before he could get mucky again.

"So, what now?" asked Eridan, removing his expensive shoes by the kitchen door as they went back inside. "Is Kar still playing his silly game?"

"Let's see, shall we?" Sollux replied, walking towards the living room. "If he's still playing, there's not much we can do; seeing the TV is pretty much the only form of entertainment in this shithole."

Much to Sollux's surprise, Karkat had seized his intense video gaming session, and was now staring at the monitor with an angry glare.

"What's wrong, KK? Did _Crash Bandicoot _go beyond your gaming capacity?" Sollux asked, as he poked his head through the living room door. Karkat snapped round; an awful-looking scowl plastered onto his dark face. "Finished it. That game was fucking easy."

"Whatever you say." shrugged Sollux, swanning into the room and collapsing into the sofa. "Can we watch a movie? Assuming that I now have full ownership over my _own _TV."

"Yeah, but I get to choose it." Karkat growled, his knees brought up to his chest as his rocked on his heels. "You already owe me a movie night."

"Fine." Sollux waltzed into the living room and plopped himself onto the three-seater couch, near the TV set. Eridan followed after him and settled down next to him, nuzzling against the fabric of the taller boy's mud-covered hoodie. Sollux hooked an arm around Eridan's shoulder, pulling him into a tighter embrace.

"Oh God, you two are so fucking gross." grunted Karkat, as he delved a hand in the DVD box beside the television. "No sloppy shit while I'm watching the movie, or I might puke. Promise?"

"Fine." Sollux had no intention on keeping this promise, however, as he swept aside the dark-haired teen's violet fringe with a swift motion, and pressed a light kiss to his forehead. Luckily, Karkat was too busy digging through Sollux's collection of DVDs that he didn't notice.

"All these DVDs are old as shit!" Karkat bellowed, tossing a couple of cases behind him. "And they're all cartoony animated trash!"

"You should give cartoons a chance!" Sollux leant in towards Karkat, and pointed an accusing finger at the shorter boy. "Some of those are classics!"

By then, Sollux was already next to Karkat, as the two fought a miniature battle to get their hands into that DVD box. With a mighty shove, Sollux knocked the shorter lad out of the way, and proceeded to search inside for a DVD. Eridan folded his arms as he looked on; a little annoyed that Sollux had suddenly ended their cuddling session.

"KK, these movies are pure gold! Classics!" Sollux cried, flicking through the seemingly endless box of DVDs. "_Brother Bear_, _Bambi_, _The Fox and the Hound_... How can you not love these Disney classics?"

"Because maybe I've grown up a little?" remarked Karkat, in a sarcastic tone. Sollux frowned.

"...I remember when my dad came home from the store once, and he brought this DVD back." Sollux salvaged a battered old case from the box. It really was showing its age; the image on the case was faded and ripped in places, but you could easily tell what it was. If the cartoon lion on the packaging wasn't enough to convince you, the bold titling which read '_The Lion King_' definitely would. "It was the first movie I ever watched with my mum and dad. I loved every second of it."

Sollux stared down at the case. Its protective plastic covering was peeling, but that didn't seem to matter too much. Then he turned to Karkat. "Watching these movies, they kind of bring me back to the days when life was easy, and I didn't give a shit about all the bad stuff that was happening around me. Is re-living those times really that much of an offense?"

Karkat was speechless.

"Can we watch _The Lion King_, then?"

No response. Karkat was staying stubbornly quiet, so Sollux carefully removed the delicate disc from its protective casing and placed it in the DVD tray so cautiously, you would have thought he was handling an infant, rather than a disc. With a soft push, the tray slid back, and the TV monitor; which before had been a blank screen of black, suddenly burst into motion. The usual scenes flashed past; the annoying adverts of upcoming Disney movies that Sollux used to despise, as he scrambled back to the sofa to snuggle up beside Eridan, waiting anxiously for the ads to end. The purple-fringed boy let Sollux wrap his arms around his chest and press kisses onto the back of his neck, as the familiar opening scene began. A golden sun rising up into the crimson red African sky, the savannah animals perking up with curiosity; the well-known _Lion King _theme song playing along in the background. Sollux gave the smaller boy a tight hug as the animals started to congregate below _Pride Rock_, which Eridan responded with a high-pitched squeak; and was promptly shh'd by Sollux. Sollux's eyes were fixed to the screen, just as the lion cub was introduced into the scene.

"Oh my fucking God, I love this movie so much." murmured Sollux, as he watched the baby Simba being lifted high up on the cliff. Eridan answered this by rubbing his cheek against the warm fabric of Sollux's hoodie. Karkat glanced back to the happy couple at that moment, and made a cacophony of fake retching noises, whist grinning mischievously, before launching a pillow at the taller boy's head. Sollux managed to bat the cushion away just in time, before all three of them burst into fits of laughter. And for once, Sollux was truly grateful to be surrounded by his friends. Friends who accepted him for who he was, and not like the assholes at school who judged him solely on what they could see. Giving his beloved a final squeeze before settling down into their tight embrace, a heated sensation formed in his stomach, reminding him he really was fortunate for Eridan and Karkat. He just wanted to stay like that forever; he wasn't going to let anything get in the way of that moment.


	21. Chapter 21

**Author's Note : This chapter contains mature content. To read it, visit my tumblr blog, glitterfics! (the link can be found on my profile). Thanks!**


	22. Chapter 22

After using the shower for its intended use, Sollux and Eridan exited the bathroom and trekked back to the former's bedroom; dressed in creamy-white towels that hung loosely around their hips. From the loud noises of clinking chinaware emanating from downstairs, it was assumed that Karkat was in the kitchen making breakfast. More specifically, making toast, as that was the only thing that Karkat could make which wouldn't result in total chaos.

Once inside Sollux's room, the pair started to change out of their towels and into some actual clothing. Sollux had offered to take Eridan's expansive suitcase upstairs the night before, so the huge thing was there and waiting. Eridan launched himself towards the case, laid it down onto the carpet and flipped the top off. He then started to dig around in the seemingly endless collection of crap for some clothes to wear. Sollux groaned, as he made his way to his closet. He grabbed a pair of clean boxers that were lying on the floor and slipped them on underneath his towel as he went.

He didn't have much of a variety. There were mainly just short-sleeved shirts, hoodies and jeans; because those were pretty much Sollux's clothing equivalent to a staple diet. He was a fan of shirts that had things printed on them; whether it was a witty phrase, or an attention-grabbing image. Those kinds of shirts really intrigued him, and if he had any extra money to spend, he would go out and buy some graphic tees.

Today, Sollux was going to wear one of his favourite tops; a plain black t-shirt with a large 'Tribal' bee design printed white in the centre. It was basically a stencilled image of a bee. Underneath that, in bold white print, was the word 'BUZZING'. Yes, this was the perfect shirt to subtly show his love for those tiny insects. He pulled it over his head, and continued to rummage around in his closet for a pair of jeans. He found a pair of black ones, and although they were slightly ripped at the flares, they would do. He'd been meaning to buy a new pair, but had never got round to it. After putting on his jeans, he shut the closet doors, and walked over to Eridan.

The rosy-cheeked boy was knelt on the carpet beside his purple seahorse-print suitcase, holding up different shirts up to his bare body. He had managed to choose some trousers; a pair of beige Chino shorts that were a couple of sizes too small, as they hugged around his thighs. Noticing Sollux was standing right by him, Eridan looked up, seemingly happy, as his neutral line of a mouth uplifted into a cheerful grin.

"I'm in a bit of a dilemma here, Sol. Which shirt looks the best?" Eridan asked, holding up a couple of shirts. They didn't have huge images or text on them, just small, insignificant logos hidden somewhere on them. Sollux pulled a face.

"I can't really tell the difference, to be honest..." Sollux shrugged, his brows creased. "They're all just plain white shirts."

"Don't you know anythin' about fashion?" Eridan exclaimed, obviously offended by Sollux's previous comment. "They're fuckin' designer brands! You'd have to be pretty ignorant not to notice that this is _Ralph Lauren _and that this is _Prada_."

"Damn, sorry..." grumbled Sollux. Fashion really was a touchy subject with Eridan, and he made sure that he didn't make any more brash comments. "Uh, I guess the one with the crocodile logo in the corner?"

Eridan's eyes lit up once again. "Oh, _Lacoste_? I s'pose I'll go with that, then."

After slipping on the overpriced designer brand shirt, he picked up his thick black glasses which were lying beside him and placed them onto his nose, adjusting them slightly with his thumb and forefinger, and picked himself off the floor. "Right, I have to do my hair. It's an absolute mess!"

"No it's not!" assured Sollux, enveloping the smaller teenager from behind into an embrace. "To be honest, I think your hair looks so much better without all the cosmetic stuff you put into it."

"You think?" Eridan moved a hand through his mass of ash-black curls. It looked so much more natural. Dark, choppy bangs sprung out at the sides, and his purple-bleached fringe swept over his pretty blue eyes.

"Of course I think so. I'm going to love your appearance, no matter what." Sollux pressed his face up to Eridan's neck and placed a kiss onto his pale skin.

"Fine. I'll leave the products outta my hair this time, but only because you like it." Eridan was obviously flattered, and his face lit up with a glowing red radiance. Taking out the last few accessories from his suitcase, Eridan wrapped a white summer scarf around his neck and slipped on some gold bangles before slamming the lid shut and rejoining with Sollux. The bangles chinked against each other as Eridan snaked his arm around Sollux's waist.

"What now, fashion disaster?" teased Eridan, impressed with the new nickname he had come up with.

"Oi, watch your mouth, fishy." Sollux retorted in response, giving Eridan a squeeze. "I'm guessing we're having breakfast, providing KK hasn't burnt the kitchen down yet."

The two ventured down to the kitchen, and luckily for them, the toaster hadn't been set alight. Karkat had taken the time to set the table up nicely; he had found the old blue gingham tablecloth and had spread it over the dining table, and had put out the chipped china plates, accompanied by glasses of orange juice. In the centre of the table, stood a steaming plate of toast, with the tub of butter beside it. Even Bumble had been catered for, as he was greedily lapping away at his food dish.

"Wow, KK, I didn't know you could lay a table!" Sollux exclaimed with mock amazement.

"Shut it, Captor. I'm doing you and your new mate a favour." Karkat couldn't help but crack into a grin, so he turned back to the toast he was buttering on the kitchen counter. "Sit down and help yourself."

"Well, I should think I can help myself." Sollux pulled up a chair and grabbed a few slices of toast from the plate. "But thanks. I appreciate it, dude."

"So, are you planning on doing anything today?" asked Karkat, sitting down in the chair opposite Sollux, while Eridan sat down next to him.

"Nothing special. I'll probably take Bumble for a walk with ED later, maybe go to the park and bust some sweet moves on my board. What about you?"

"I'm... meeting up with John later." Karkat flushed slightly. "We're going to see a movie. I'm letting him choose which one, because I'm just so nice."

"Ooh, is this the big day, then? First date with your beloved Egbert?" Sollux badgered, a stupid smile spreading across his face as ripped off a mouthful of buttered toast.

"For your information, it's not even a date. I said 'meeting', you arsehole." growled Karkat, trying to hide the growing blush by sipping at his glass of juice.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Sollux cooed, finishing off his 3rd slice. "Oi, did I tell you that we bumped into that creepy friend of yours yesterday? Nepeta?"

"No, you didn't." Karkat placed his glass onto the table. "And once you get to know her, you get used to the _Hello Kitty _obsession and the random roleplaying. She didn't cause too much trouble for you, I hope?"

"Bleh, could have been worse." Sollux nibbled at the crust of his 4th piece of toast. "She 'pounced' onto me and added us to the shipping wall. Other than that, we weren't too badly wounded."

"Maybe I should let her know that her newest ship is _canon_?" Karkat passed him a devilish grin. Sollux kicked Karkat underneath the table. "Ow, shit!"

"Don't you mention a word to her." Sollux was deadly serious. "She's the biggest fucking gossip I know. I'd rather not have my sexuality slopped across the whole town like a fucking _Facebook _relationship status. So keep your mouth shut."

"Mmf, fine." muttered Karkat, getting up from the table and washing his plate in the sink. "You have my word. But don't hold me responsible if anyone else finds out. The way you two have been acting towards each other is pretty suspicious."

With that, Karkat wiped his hands on a nearby tea towel and stepped through the kitchen doorframe to leave. "I'm going for a walk before I meet up with John. Catch you two later."

"Well, now he's out of the way..." Sollux leant over to Eridan and was about to place a kiss on his cheek, when the kitchen door swung open.

"Sollux?" Sollux's head swivelled round faster than anything. In the doorway, stood his father.


	23. Chapter 23

Sollux snapped his head back from Eridan's cheek, and sat bolt upright at the table, wide-eyed. Did his father just catch them in the act? Or would he just not mention it? Whatever the outcome, Sollux forced himself to utter something and break the awkward silence.

"Hey... d-dad..." Sollux offered his father a sheepish expression. He racked his brain for anything that would steer him away from a possibly embarrassing situation. "So... how are things?"

"Not great." his father replied, closing the kitchen door behind him as he stepped inside and pulled up a chair at the dining table. "Your mother and I... we're taking a small break. Just to get our heads straight, y'know? No need to worry about me or your mum. We just need a breather."

"Okay..." Sollux's head drooped. He knew that things wouldn't be fine and dandy straight away, but it was still saddening to know that his parents weren't going to be living with each other for a while. "I'll still get to see mum, right?"

"Of course. But she's staying at her friend's house for a bit, so you'll be seeing more of me than her." Sollux's father explained. The room was quiet for a moment, until Sollux's dad's gloomy expression attempted to turn into a cheery smile. It didn't look that euphoric, but at least he was trying to be positive. "But anyway, it looks as if you've been having quite the party here while I've been gone. I saw Karkat on the way in. And who's your new friend you've been getting cosy with?"

_Shit. _His dad was only joking with him, but that last sentence confirmed everything that Sollux feared his father saw on his way in. He didn't seem angry at least.

"Uh, this is Eridan. My new _friend_." Sollux struggled with the last word, as he had a sudden urge to say _boyfriend _instead. On being mentioned, Eridan quietly uttered a greeting.

"Ever the popular one." teased his father, swiping a cold piece of toast from the plate and nibbling the crust. "You doing anything constructive today?"

"Just going to take Bumble out for a walk, I guess." Sollux toyed with the butter-smeared palette knife on the table. He avoided looking his father in the eye.

"Well, you two enjoy yourselves." Sollux's father tore off a piece of toast. "I'll probably be at home for most of the day if you need me."

Sollux nodded, and got up from the table. He picked up his plate and dunked it into the shallow waters of the washing up bowl, then returned to the table to collect Eridan's. After all was cleared away, he and Eridan proceeded to exit the room. Before leaving, Sollux craned his neck past the doorframe.

"Hey dad. If you need anything, just give me a buzz."

"Sure thing."

As the couple stepped down the hallway, fingers intertwined, Sollux couldn't help thinking that his father was taking the whole situation extremely well. He was surprised at how well he himself was taking it. He knew his first response would have been to burst into a fit of inconsolable tears. But no. He had Eridan. And that was the thing that kept him going.

Bumble; who was full of energy that morning thanks to a hearty breakfast, courtesy of Karkat, skipped along beside them. He had overheard the word 'walk', and was all too happy to oblige. Sollux gave the retriever a pat before grabbing the battered old lead that was lying in a heap on a nearby table. He clipped it onto Bumble's collar as they reached the front door.

"Gosh, I forgot to thank you for earlier." Eridan nudged Sollux suggestively, as they left the house. "It was fuckin' amazing. I didn't even know you were so good at giving head and-"

"Shh!" Sollux jabbed him in the ribs. "Not so loud!"

"Sorry." Eridan reduced his voice to a whisper. "It was pretty fuckin' good though."

"I know." Sollux flashed him a suave toothy smirk. "I've got it down to an art."

"Hmph."

It was only 11 am, but the sky was as bright as ever. It was a brilliant shade of cerulean blue, and without any clouds in the sky acting as a protective veil, the morning sun pummelled down upon the ground below. The couple strolled out of the driveway and onto the main street as casually as anything, with Bumble joyously tagging beside them. The dog occasionally paused to inspect certain patches of grass, or just to take in the surroundings around him, but other than that, they had a pretty smooth walk.

"They might have evaded my pursuit before... but this time, the hunter has truly cornered her prey!"

Sollux didn't dare turn round. He clenched his teeth and let out a weary sigh. Unfortunately for him, he didn't have to. Before he knew it, a rather weighty figure collided into him, grasping around his shoulders and wrapping its legs around his waist. Sollux wasn't thrown to the ground by the impact this time, as he just about managed to keep his balance. He felt the weight being wrenched off him, however, as Eridan had decided to intervene, and was now yelling abuse at the 'mystery' offender.

"Don't you fuckin' touch him again! You could have busted his neck, Jesus Christ, how stupid do you have to be to do somethin' like that!" screeched Eridan, who seemed to be even more shocked than he was angered. Sollux placed a hand on his shoulder in order to calm him down.

"ED, chill. I'm fine." Sollux assured him. "NE, can't you go and find someone else to bother for once?"

"I just thought I'd see how my favourite pairing is doing!" purred Nepeta, who was completely unfazed by Eridan's scolding. Today, the same cat beanie from the last encounter rested upon her head of dark, messy curls, but today, it was complimented with a black _Hello Kitty _tanktop and a pair of hot pink shorts. She had also donned a pair of pink and black striped stockings, and obnoxiously pink trainers. Draped over her shoulder, was a large messenger bag. Sollux and Eridan turned away and were about to walk off, but Nepeta called them back.

"Wait! I want to show you something I found!"

Sollux whirled around, as Nepeta unzipped her huge bag. "Look! I found him in the road. He has a hurt paw, so I'm taking him home. His name is Leon!"

Inside the spacious bag, nestled in between some sketchpads, was a rather large curled-up ball of ivory white fur. Sollux jolted back in horror.

"Fucking Hell, NE, you can't stuff a cat in a bag like that!" he exclaimed. "Take it to a rescue centre or something!"

Bumble, who had happily been sniffing at the foot of a garbage can, perked up as he noticed there was a new presence around. He trotted up to the bag and tried to nose his way into it.

"No! Bad dog!" Nepeta squealed, plunging her hand into the bag to grab the kitten and holding the poor creature high above her head. This only agitated the curious retriever, as he jumped up at the girl to try and get a closer look at the thing she possessed. Sollux tugged at the dog's lead with all his might, but it wasn't helping much.

And that was when the whole situation descended into utter chaos.

Suddenly awakened from whatever kind of trance it was previously in before, the animal; that was once perched upon Nepeta's palm, sprung to life in an instant. It shrieked with fear, and in a panic, clawed its way down the girl's exposed arm and launched itself onto the pavement. By now, Nepeta had joined the awful cacophony of screams. She yowled in pain, clutching her gash-covered arm as blood dripped from the wounds. 'Leon' was now making a beeline towards the main road.

As soon as the cat had stepped onto the concrete, Bumble was after it like a bloodhound chasing after a fox. Sollux pulled against the lead to restrain him, and heard that one sound he didn't want to hear at that precise moment.

Snap.


	24. Chapter 24

**Author's Note : For anyone who is still having trouble locating my tumblr blog, the direct link is on my profile page. (:**

* * *

The agile flash of white fur bounded in the direction of the roundabout; showing no signs of stopping any time soon, for Bumble was still hot on its tail. The retriever only had one intention at that point, and that was to get close to that cat.

"BUMBLE!" Sollux bellowed, throwing the torn piece of lead he was holding to the ground, before tearing off after his dog. He almost tripped up on the pavement, and struggled to regain his balance as he tried desperately to catch up to Bumble.

"Now look what you've done!" Eridan threw the howling girl a look of despair, and ran towards the roundabout. Nepeta was dabbing at her bleeding arm with an old handkerchief, tears staining her forlorn face as she looked on hopelessly.

Bumble wasn't afraid of the oncoming cars that zoomed past. He had seen plenty of cars before. 'Leon' had managed to avoid the huge vehicles, and was now settled proudly on a high branch of the towering oak tree which stood in the middle of the roundabout. The feline hissed tauntingly at Bumble, as the dog stopped for a moment to ponder what he was going to attempt next.

"Bumble! BUMBLE!" Sollux just managed to wheeze before exploding into a coughing fit. Sollux had never been an athletic person, mainly due to the fact that extreme physical exercise and stress could potentially trigger his very mild case of asthma. He had a rather traumatic incident when he was nine, during PE at his old primary school, when he was told to run a whole lap around the school field without stopping, as a punishment for forgetting his kit. That was when he first knew about his condition; where the only details he could remember were collapsing onto the dry grass and heaving for breath, and being carted off into an emergency ambulance. His case of asthma really wasn't severe, and was only really brought on when his body was under huge amounts of physical stress, but that fateful day left him with a great anxiety about straining himself too much. He wouldn't put any effort into the mandatory PE lessons at school, and hated the teachers who taught that subject with a passion. The only exercise he actually even got was through his skateboarding, and he was generally pretty relaxed while he was doing that, as it was more of a hobby to him than something he'd pursue. But intense running was completely out of the question. However, this time, he had no choice but to run.

Eridan quickly caught up to him, being noticeably sportier than he was.

"Cod, are you okay?" Eridan slapped Sollux's back a few times, attempting to calm his spluttering. Sollux responded by pushing Eridan's hand away and shakily pointing towards Bumble, who was still figuring out whether to cross the busy road. Eridan didn't even know what to do anymore.

Eridan glanced up towards Bumble; who was now staring at him with his deep, honey-brown gaze. The dog looked as if he was completely frozen as he slowly crept towards him, his hand outstretched as a gesture of friendliness. Bumble remained still until Eridan was about a metre away from him, at which he shifted a little. Eridan gulped.

"Come on, Bumble, come to Eri..." he murmured, creeping closer while keeping his eyes locked on the dog. "That's a good dog... come here..."

Bumble just continued to stare at him, panting rhythmically. Eridan crept even closer. And then, the dog bolted.

Eridan felt his heart hitch as Bumble bounded into the road, the hairs on the back of his neck and on his arms pricking at his skin as the dog dodged the incoming cars. He held his breath. A chorus of honking horns and screeching tyres filled the air as Bumble raced over to the little slab of landscaping in the centre of the roundabout. Until finally, Bumble had made his way onto the grassy hill, and sat down at the foot of the oak tree; barking insults at the white cat who was perched high up out of harm's way. The purple-fringed boy couldn't believe his eyes, breathing steadily to sedate his pulsating heart.

"He's... he's okay!" Eridan turned and stumbled back towards Sollux, who was recovering from his violent coughing fit. "He's fine... it's all going to be okay..."

And then it happened.

The sounds of metal slamming against wood thundered behind them, scrunching tyres against asphalt. Then the sound of doors popping open. Eridan grabbed Sollux's hand, and dragged him towards the little island in the middle of the roundabout; where a careless driver had crashed into the tree.

The culprit had gotten out of the car, and was pacing nervously around his billowing vehicle. On seeing Sollux and Eridan approaching him, he let out a shrill and backed up against his smashed-up car.

"I'm... really, very sorry!" cried the driver; a small, puny-looking individual, with spikey rust-brown hair that had been styled into a Mohawk, and nervous light-brown eyes that trembled with fear. "I-I didn't mean to crash! T-this is my f-first time driving without my instructor!"

"Where's my dog?" Sollux yelled, towering over the tiny man who stood before him.

"D-dog? What dog?" stuttered the shorter individual, "I-I didn't see a dog... Only the t-tree..."

"Bumble!" Sollux was reduced to a state of mad panic, as he scouted the area for his beloved retriever. Sure enough, he found him. Lying in a mangled heap underneath the car; was his precious pet. Sollux blinked away the tears as he dragged his faithful companion out, uttering words of positivity under his breath; _you're going to be fine, buddy! Come on, boy! You'll get through this, I know it!_

Once Bumble's body was out in the open, it was certain that the dog _wasn't going to get through this_. His limbs were twisted into unnatural positions, and his eyes were permanently struck open in shock. _Bumble was dead._

"No... fuck NO!" Sollux howled, tears streaming down his face as he desperately tried to revive the dog; shaking the creature with all the strength he had left, but his efforts were in vain. He curled up into a pathetic foetal position on the grass, beside Bumble. He could vaguely hear what he thought was Eridan's voice over his own delirious screams, comforting hands restraining him as he lashed his fists out at nothing in particular. He could hear the sounds of a phone being dialled, a frantic stuttering voice begging for help.

"No... no..." Sollux's anguish soon faded, as he simply didn't have the energy to keep screaming. He breathed deeply, his throat stinging as if needles had been pushed through his neck. He could feel himself being cradled in somebody's arms and being hushed gently. Sollux didn't know whether this was just an attempt to restrain him or a genuine act of compassion, either way, he just let himself droop in whoever's arms he was being held in. His vision was bleaching to black once again, and before he could register what was going on, he drifted into unconsciousness.


	25. Chapter 25

And so, the next few weeks were spent pretty miserably. Which was completely understandable. After Sollux had passed out on that fateful day, an emergency ambulance was called out, courtesy of the nervous young man who unfortunately brought Bumble's existence to an adverse close; who revealed himself as Tavros Nitram once aid had arrived. Even throughout the whole ordeal, Eridan had protectively guarded Sollux's unconscious body; even when the ambulance arrived and strongly assured that they would take good care of him, and that he needn't worry. Eridan ended up sitting in the back of the ambulance with Sollux; who was still out cold, as the medical staff on board did various tests and checks. He waited at Sollux's beside at the hospital, whispering words of assurance and begging him to wake up. Even when nurses came into the ward and told Eridan he probably should go home, and that they had everything under control, the boy just replied, _"I'm not leavin' without him."_

And with that, he would rest his head upon Sollux's duvet-covered knees and close his eyes.

The doctors predicted that he wouldn't be in there for much longer; for he hadn't sustained any physical damage, just mental shocks that had temporarily shut his body down. And they were right. At exactly 4:06 pm, Eridan felt the bedsheets shift underneath him, as Sollux regained consciousness. After being quizzed about what had happened earlier, as fainting clearly wasn't too normal, Sollux and Eridan left the hospital. Sollux's father had been in the waiting room for about an hour before Sollux finally came round, as he first had to decide what he was going to do about Bumble's remains. He was relieved when Sollux finally emerged from the ward, with Eridan guiding him along.

The very next day, Bumble's funeral was held. If you could even call it that. Sollux's father had wanted to deal with the task of burying the family pet sooner rather than later, and had already prepared a large cardboard box and had dug a 3-foot hole in the more secluded part of the back garden, next to the shrubbery that Bumble loved to laze by on warm summer days. Naturally, Eridan had came to support Sollux, and stood beside him; an arm looped around his waist comfortingly. Karkat had also shown up, and stared into the deep pit that had been bored into the ground. The cardboard coffin containing Bumble's body had already been placed into the cavity.

"You were a good dog. A great dog, even." Sollux's father began, crouching beside the hole. "And it is saddening to see a great dog go so soon."

Karkat wandered over to the pit and looked into it. "Uh, we never really got off on the right foot, but I can appreciate that you were always happy to see me, and in a way, I was too, although I didn't really show it. I'm going to miss walking through the front door and being greeted by you."

Next, it was Eridan's turn to pay his respects, and the blue-eyed teen stepped over and knelt beside the grave.

"I never really got much time to get to know you, but from what I could see, you were a wonderful, enthusiastic pup, an' we're all gonna miss you."

With that, Eridan prised one of his expensive golden rings from his finger, and dropped it into the pit with a small plop. "A goodbye gift from me. I'm hopin' you like gold as much as I do."

Sollux's father tried to persuade Eridan to take his ring back, but the pale-skinned boy declined. "It's the least I can do to pay my respect."

Finally, Sollux shuffled over uneasily, peering into that empty-looking grave. He gulped, his honey-brown eyes glazing over. No. He wasn't going to break down. He had the people who were closest to him by his side; he had to be strong.

"Hey, Bumble." he stuttered, settling down beside the large pit. "I remember our very first day together. When I rescued you from the adoption centre. I chose you out of all the other dogs there, because I knew you were special. And you were. You were always willing to listen to me whenever I'd had a crappy day at school, or if the other kids at school had bullied me. You just listened. And that was all I really needed back then, the thought that at least someone gave a shit about me. Even if you couldn't respond; or whether you even knew what I was talking about, it was assuring to know that at least someone cared. You kept me going when times were rough. And now you're gone…"

Sollux felt the salty tears prick at the corners of his eyes. But he kept going, although his voice was shaky. "… And now that you're gone, I have to stay strong. You were a huge help to me back then, and now you've been taken away so suddenly… I have to move on now…"

Sollux squeezed his eyes shut to try and restrain the tears. He felt a comforting hand slip into his own, and looked up to see Eridan smiling beside him, which gave him the strength to finish off his speech.

"But I will never forget you, boy."

Sollux felt Eridan's grasp on his hand tighten, as the stereoscopic-spectacled boy choked back his whimpers. Karkat crouched down beside him, rubbing his shoulder soothingly, and that was when Sollux could no longer retain his emotions, gagging up his final lamenting cries as he pounded his fist into the soft earth. Deciding that the ceremony was over, Sollux's father picked himself up from beside the grave and hoisted up the shovel that was lying on the grass. He started to fill in the hole, throwing soil over the pit. Sollux watched; watery-eyed, as his faithful companion was finally being put to rest. With every haul of dirt that was piled up on top of the makeshift coffin, Sollux felt a pulsating pain wrench at his chest. Until the grave had been completely sealed.

Specks of rain spattered down onto Sollux's face, merging with the rolling tears that stained his cheeks. The surroundings had curdled to grey, echoing thunderclaps serving as grisly mourns. As they were ushered inside as the storm began, Sollux took one last glance at the unmarked grave. _Goodbye, boy._


	26. Chapter 26

By the time Sollux had finally come to terms with Bumble's untimely death, the warm summer days of August that he had once lavished were long gone, and a season of reddening leaves and cooler nights was left in its place. Eridan had spent a huge amount of time with Sollux, as they took turns in staying round each other's houses. And now that the holidays were over, a busy term of college courses were due to begin.

"So, tell me again what you're doin' at college?" Eridan asked once again, for what seemed to be the hundredth time. Sollux looked up to the scarf-donned boy who was seated on his bed, as he dug through his dusty crate of old exercise books from the past year.

"Information Technology, Biology and Maths. Those are the subjects I want to get qualifications in." Sollux replied, rummaging through his trusty red-and-blue rucksack, to make sure he'd packed everything he was going to need for when he returned to college.

"I think I've enrolled for Art, History an' Drama. At least, that's what I did at my last college, so I've simply moved my options here. I'm hopin' the standards a this place match up to my last one."

"Hah, I had a feeling you'd be taking Drama, you little temperamental princess. And prepare to be disappointed, then." Sollux chuckled, zipping up the bag and pushing it aside. "Having the privilege of living in such a shitty area, Alternia College is full to the brim with chavs and idiots with the intelligence of a cell. And don't even get me started on the teachers."

"Seems like I'll be havin' fun, then." Eridan remarked, pulling Sollux up onto the bed and into an embrace. "So I suppose I'll be meetin' your so-called 'friends' then?"

"Well, you've already met KK and GZ, they're my main friends. I'm sure you'll come into contact with all the other asswits that unfortunately come to call me an acquaintance." Sollux grinned, rolling Eridan over so that they were side-by-side on the small single bed.

"I'll look forward to that." the darker-haired boy pressed a kiss to Sollux's lips as the lay facing each other on the bed. "Hey, just wonderin', does that Nep girl go to this college?"

"Does she look like she's old enough to go to college?" Sollux's voice turned sour at the girl's mention. "She's 14. Still in high school. So I definitely won't be running into her while I'm on campus."

"Oh..." Eridan buried his head into Sollux's shirt; mentioning Nepeta had sparked an unpleasant memory. "Sorry for bringin' it up."

"It's okay." Sollux's tone softened, as he let out an exhausted sigh. "All in the past now..."

They settled there for a moment, with only the lenient sound of breathing breaking what would have been complete silence in Sollux's room. The brunette interweaved his fingers into the other's fashionable lacy scarf, hesitant to break the soft symphony of snuffles which emanated from the both of them.

"Have you told your dad about us yet?"

Sollux shuffled uncomfortably on the bed, crumpling the duvet underneath him. "I'm still worried about what he'll say. I've never really talked to him about things like this, so I'm not sure what the outcome will be. I'm guessing you haven't told your dad either?"

"Fuck no. That's the last thing I want to do."

"Then we're both in the same boat."

Silence. It looked as if their relationship status was going to stay hidden for the time being. But with every day spent together, the secret was getting harder and harder to keep.

"I'd love to see you with blonde hair." Sollux suddenly blurted out, running a hand through Eridan's jet-black locks.

"No you fuckin' wouldn't. Damn, I can't even remember my natural hair colour." Eridan batted Sollux's hand away playfully. "I've been dyin' my hair for as long as I can remember."

"You'd look adorable." Sollux sighed dreamily. "So, are you all packed for college tomorrow?"

"You bet. I treated myself to a brand-new _Ralph Lauren _backpack, along with some art supplies an' textbooks."

"Watch they don't get stolen." Sollux warned him, "Most of the idiots at college think that if they see something they fancy, they can just take it. Whatever you do, don't leave anything unattended. I found that out the hard way when I first started, some asshole nicked my calculator when I wasn't looking. Who the fuck steals a calculator?"

"Guess I'm in for an interestin' term."

.-.-.-.

Sollux awoke the very next morning groggy-eyed and in no way ready to face the day ahead of him. Luckily for him, he didn't have to; well, not until 11:30, when his first class was scheduled to start. The half-asleep boy swatted his hand aimlessly around his bed, until he managed to find his mobile phone that been hidden underneath the duvet. Muttering something about having to get ready for college, Sollux drew the phone up to his face; having to squint as the sudden glare from the screen temporarily blinded him. Blinking a couple of times to regain his vision, he checked the time. 7:13am. Sollux was surprised at how early he'd woken up; normally it took him at least a week to adapt to the change of waking hours. He glanced over to where Eridan slept; on top of the camper bed that he'd had insisted on putting up whenever he stayed round, because apparently inflatable mattresses '_would fuckin' ruin my perfect posture if I was to sleep on one'_. The slumbering boy was nestled cosily underneath the crisp white lump of a blanket, and Sollux thought that he'd give Eridan thirty more minutes of sleep before jumping onto his bed, stripping him of his duvets and pinning him down to the mattress for a morning snuggle. Instead, he silently made his own bed, before creeping out of the bedroom and into the bathroom to shower.

7:49. Sollux had been in the shower and had gotten dressed for college. He reckoned he'd stick with something casual and not obnoxiously flashy. He figured a plain black tee would suffice, along with the only clean pair of jeans he had available, his white zip-up hoodie and his old scuffed-up trainers. Eridan was still dozing away by the time Sollux had put his glass studs in.

Turning to the sleeping boy with the stealth of an assassin, he pounced, ripping the blankets away and capturing Eridan; who was now wide awake, in an inescapable hug.

"Jesus, Sol! Do you have to do this every fuckin' mornin'?" Eridan exclaimed, in a dramatic tone of voice. "How I haven't died of a heart attack is astonishin'."

"How else was I going to wake you up?" Sollux nuzzled his face into Eridan's warm chest.

"Um, by lettin' me wake up naturally?" Eridan retorted, his feigned act of grumpiness quickly being engulfed by Sollux's snuggle. "You've been actin' incredibly affectionate lately. Is this some kind a secret Sol code for wantin' sex?"

"Hah! You wish." Sollux chuckled. "I guess I'm just in one of those moods."

"Well, you've got a while to wait until Valentine's Day." Eridan pressed a kiss to Sollux's freckled cheek before throwing his legs over the edge of the camper bed. "I'm gonna have a shower. What time does your first lesson start? I have Art at 11:30."

"That's pretty convenient. My first class starts at 11:30 too."

"Cool." Eridan hopped off the bed, and turned to leave.

"Oh! One last thing, ED." Sollux suddenly remembered something. "Just warning you, best keep all the romantic shit under wraps from now on. The guys at college aren't as accepting of 'our kind of relationship' as we'd like. It's bad enough having KK know, but I've told him that if he breathes a word to anyone, he's dead. And nobody is stupid enough to listen to what NE says."

"Got it." smiled Eridan, as he stood in the doorframe. "It'll be our little secret."


	27. Chapter 27

**Author's Note : The final chapter of Cityscraped! As much as I'd have liked to keep going on for longer, I go back to school next week, and it's going to be incredibly busy, with exams and such. Therefore I won't have time to update the fic. So I found an appropriate place to stop. Cityscraped was an introduction to writing Homestuck longfics for me, and I was losing my muse for it as time went on. Maybe I'll write another longfic when I find inspiration? Only time can tell. Thanks for reading!**

* * *

The couple basically lounged around for the remainder of the morning, playing _Alien Trilogy _on Sollux's PS1, sharing the leftover snacks from when Eridan had brought over too much high-calorie food for the 'slumber party', and generally just being lazy. Now, they were situated in Sollux's room; with the studious-looking teen checking the contents of his college rucksack on his bed, while Eridan sat on the frayed carpet.

Eridan was dressed rather flashily for their first day back at college; a bright red check shirt, tight black jeans and a black desert scarf hanging over his shoulders. Not to mention the numerous bangles that hung from his wrists (some of which were worth a fortune; as they were adorned with gold and precious stones) and, of course, the many rings he wore upon his bony fingers; minus the one that had been tossed into Bumble's grave. The finger that the ring had once settled upon was now completely bare. Eridan seemed to have refrained from replacing the ring, as a sign of respect. He was wearing a pair of shiny crimson sneakers, which looked so rubbery in the light, you would have thought they were made of plastic. The usual thick glasses frames balanced upon his face.

"Are you sure you want to walk around campus wearing stuff like that?" Sollux threw the fashionable lad an unsure glance. Eridan was quick to bat away any doubt.

"A course! It's always good to make a good impression, y'know."

"If that impression is making your fellow students want to mug you in the corridors, then go right ahead." smirked Sollux, as he rifled through his rucksack from the hundredth time that morning.

"Hmph!" grunted Eridan, "At least I'll be getting attention."

"I don't even want attention. Who wants to be stared at by a bunch of brain-dead college students?" Sollux hated being the centre of attention. Eridan loved it. It was clear now to the both of them that this was where they were polar opposites.

There was silence for a while. Save for the quiet rustling noise of Sollux arranging the books in his rucksack. Then Eridan piped up.

"So, what do you want to do in our last few hours a freedom?" he asked, as Sollux zipped up his bag. "We've played videogames and watched TV. What now?"

"I say we build a pillow fort." Sollux flashed the other a frivolous grin, before sntaching the cushion that was rested neatly at the far end of his bed.

"Jesus, Sol, I thought you were eighteen. Not some five year-old kiddy that hasn't yet discovered that pillows aren't supposed to be used as building materials."

Sollux threw him a saddened look. "C'mon, you remember being a kid and building a pillow fort! We might as well throw all of our childishness that we've got left into it. Especially when there isn't going to be any messing around when we get back to college. Plus, my dad's at work."

"Fine. But only because you have _the_ cutest puppy face when you get all upset!" Eridan cooed, lunging for Sollux on the bed, and capturing him in a tight embrace. "C'mere, you!"

They rolled around on Sollux's duvets for a while; with Sollux; who was in near-hysterics, trying to push the other onto the floor, as Eridan tickled him and attempted to press kisses onto any unguarded spots of skin he was able to get to. When Eridan decided that Sollux had been administered a decent amount of 'the tickle treatment', he hopped off the bed. It took Sollux a few minutes to recover.

"Don't you… ever fucking do that again." wheezed Sollux, although he still had a stupid grin on his face. "Right… That pillow fort."

"Are you sure you have enough pillows in here?" Eridan asked, as they stood by the airing cupboard on the landing. Sollux was busy digging out anything he could find in there; pillows, blankets and towels, and tossing them behind him.

"If there's one thing that this house is always stocked up on, it's pillows." Sollux replied. "Because Bumble used to rip them all up…"

The hazel-eyed boy sighed deeply at the mention of his departed pet. "I guess we won't have to spend so much on pillows now. Haha…"

He felt a gentle touch brush against his back. Sollux turned slowly to face Eridan, and rested his forehead against the shorter teen's shoulder.

"It's hard to forget, isn't it." Eridan mumbled comfortingly, pulling Sollux into a hug.

"I… don't really feel like making that fort…" muttered Sollux, his somber voice muffled against the fabric of Eridan's shirt. "Sorry…"

"It's fine, I understand. Less of a mess to clear up afterwards." Eridan consoled him, entangling his lean fingers in Sollux's messy honey-brown hair. "Is there anything you want to do?"

"It's 11:00. We don't have time to do anything big. We should probably be getting ready to go to college." Sollux drew himself away from Eridan's embrace and turned back towards his room.

"Okay."

11:10. Sollux carried out one final check, to make sure everything he needed was present in his rucksack. As he zipped up the bag and hauled it up onto his shoulder, Eridan was there waiting for him; leant up against the doorframe, with his designer courier bag draped over his arm.

"Ready to go then?" Eridan asked as Sollux walked towards him. The shorter lad placed a kiss onto the other's lips.

"One last thing. I have to do something first." Sollux pecked him back, before scooting past the blue-eyed boy and beelining down the stairs.

Sollux closed the back door behind him, as he stepped out into the garden. The soggy grass squelched underneath his scruffy trainers; the weather had been awful that week. The skies were still grey and miserable, and threatened to pelt down on him, but so far this was just writing on the wall. Sollux stumbled over to newly-marked grave and crouched down beside it. The overgrown shrubbery beside him offered some protection against the few spits of rain that fell. Inhaling the muggy air, the lanky teenager's gaze was locked on the marble headstone that stuck up from the ground. Eridan had offered to buy one, and even had a personal message engraved into it.

** "In loving memory of Bumble,**

**The kiss of the sun for pardon,  
The song of the birds for mirth,  
One's nearer God's heart in a garden,  
Than anywhere else on earth."**

Sollux didn't really understand the epitaph that had been picked for Bumble's headstone. He was just content with anything, really. He placed his hand against the cool marble surface of the headstone, dampened by the flecks of rain that fell from the grisly sky.

"So this is where you ran off to, huh?"

Sollux swiveled round to see Eridan standing behind him. "Sorry. I just wanted to say something for the last time."

"No problem." Eridan smiled, crouching down next to his beloved and slipped his hand into Sollux's.

"Goodbye, boy."


End file.
